7 Ways to Reignite Your Passion For Jesus This Spring

It’s happened again, as it does every year. Spring has started to sprout up all around us. The ground is getting warmer, flowers are starting to bloom, and the sun has begun to peek out from behind the clouds of winter.

I notice the signs of spring when I take the dog out for a walk when dormant bushes light up once again with life. But I also notice this as a person of faith when signs of the new season beckon me to wake up to new connections with God. Join me on a walk around the proverbial neighborhood as we explore seven ways you can reignite your passion for Jesus this spring.

1.   Stop and Smell the Roses

We humans tend to go through life at a rapid, exhaustive pace. But when we do, we miss the beauty that is often right in front of us. Take time to stop and smell the roses, not only in front of your neighbor’s house but also in your life of faith. God is found in those tiny glimpses of the present moment, in those holy moments of “patting the puppy,” as author Annie Dillard wrote in Pilgrim at Tinker Creek.

2.   Go Green

Although the phrase is applicable when it comes to honoring the environment (including, as it grows, in our backyard gardens), it’s equally relevant to our spirituality. Think about those bracelets you used to make in Sunday School as a child: the color green signifies new life or growth. When we go green, we make Colossians 1:10 real: “We pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please God in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God.”

3.   Be Loyal to the Soil

Ask any gardener for the key to growing flowers, fruits, and vegetables, and it’s all in the soil. It’s not any different when it comes to connecting with the Divine. We have to be mindful of the soil, for this is where growth happens! Think about the meaning of the harvest story in Matthew 13, when the farmer casts seeds just over the top layer of soil and then in gravel, weeds, and on good earth. There’s a reason we’re supposed to be loyal to the soil and lean into being the good earth.

4.   Bloom Where You are Planted

There’s something magical about finding beauty in the most unlikely of places—when a flower sprouts out of a heap of rubble or when a volunteer tomato plant pops up from the compost pile. It’s like these plants have taken the advice to “bloom where you are planted” to heart. They are cheerily teaching us to do the same, no matter our situation in life. Perhaps the job isn’t what you want it to be. Maybe you’re new in town or just took on a new role in the tiny neighborhood parish you call home. Whatever it is, lean into the Spirit and blossom precisely where you are, as you are.

5.   The Earth Laughs in Flowers, Join In!

Ralph Waldo Emerson got it right when he wrote, “The earth laughs in flowers.” Although the quote can be interpreted in a number of ways, I tend to err on the side of whimsy and joy when it comes to interpreting his words. It’s no different when we step outside into the restless charm of creation. The flowers dare us to laugh! The bees beckon us to taste! Is this not the goodness of God, daring us to open up every part of our senses so we can taste and see that the Lord is good?

6.   Weed it and Reap

It’s funny how this little play on words finds a home in the newness of spring and in the life of faith. Now that the new season is upon us, ask any gardener how they’re preparing for spring and a begrudging “weeding” will inevitably be heard just as ridding the soil of pesky weeds is necessary for future growth, in the Christian tradition when we, too weed it and reap. When we realize the error of our ways, we confess our sins. If we’re lucky, we purge our lives of this sin and reap the newness of Christ that happens in turn.

7.   Plant Kindness

Just as spring is the time to dig into the soil and bury flower bulbs (so they might pop up in a bounty of beauty in just a few months), now is also the time to plant kindness. Employ the Golden Rule by treating others the way you want to be treated. Love both yourself and your neighbors with kindness!

A little bit of kindness really does go a long way.

Wherever you walk, in whatever (proverbial) neighborhood you call home, may spring be a time that genuinely reignites your passion for Jesus.