Spring ushers in welcome changes after dark, icy winter. When I behold sunny blue skies and budding trees, it brings a new bounce to my step. But where I live, spring is slow in coming. Yesterday we had a gorgeous sunny day; today however, overcast skies drizzle down gray. I’m reminded that my heart could use a bit of spring too.
If you’re like me, months of cloudy skies and fewer daylight hours can bring on a case of the doldrums. I’m ready to sweep out the cobwebs of winter and celebrate new life and renewal this spring. How about joining me?
6 Ways to Get More Spring in our Hearts:
Get Outside
Going outdoors for a walk in the sunshine lifts my spirits. Now is the perfect time to take a family hike or go on a weekend picnic. Make it easy. Even if it’s just picking up Egg McMuffins at the drive through and eating breakfast in the park on a Saturday, it’s still a picnic!
Get Physical
It’s time to rev up our sluggish metabolisms and maybe shed a few extra pounds that piled on while we were homebound. (That’s for me.) Join a gym, or better yet, take your exercise routine outside.
Bring Nature Inside
Cut a few blooming branches or sprigs of new growth off of a tree and bring them into the house. Buy a grocery store pot of bulbs or a bouquet of spring flowers. Make a DYI terrarium or a mini succulent garden for your living room.
Tackle Spring Projects
A small spring cleaning project, like taking down the kitchen curtains to wash them, can add a lift to your spirit. Set aside 15 minutes a day to clean out the garage or declutter your bookshelves. A new sense of order brings peace to your soul.
Make time for Self-Care
Take time for hobbies and interests that you enjoy. Get a new haircut or a pedicure. Splurge on some new makeup. Banish the winter grouchies by making sure you get enough rest at night to be a happy camper by day.
Revive Your Spirit
The best renovation of all is the spring God brings to our hearts. Budding trees, singing birds, and newly green grass remind us of how God renews our spirits when we seek Him. Hosea 6:3 prompts us to pursue God with more passion:
What brings freshness to your spiritual life? How about enrolling in a new Bible study or reading a Christian book on a subject you want to grow in? I like to change things up in my quiet time to bring new freshness to my relationship with God.
Here are some suggestions to revive tired quiet times:
- Move it out to the back porch, and see if nature doesn’t inspire a deeper connection with God.
- Start by singing a quiet—or loud!– song to worship Him.
- Read scripture out loud.
- Use colored pencils to mark up your Bible.
- Check out this post: 10 Tips for Getting out of a Bible Reading Rut.
As we take steps to press on to know Him more, God responds to us. He wants to bring more spring both to our step and to our hearts.
Now it’s your turn: What do you like to do during the spring to bring an extra lift to your spirit?
I link up with these communities: Holly Barrett’s #TestimonyTuesday, Kelly Balarie’s #RaRalinkup, Jennifer Dukes Lee’s #TellHisStory, Holley Gerth’s CoffeeFor your Heart, and Meredith Bernard’s #Woman2Woman.
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Love your spring images! I’ve been in Washington state all this week and they had trees blooming and daffodils everywhere. In southern Indiana we haven’t been so fortunate yet.
I love to read the Bible on the porch! Your suggestions are great and it’s needful to switch things up sometimes and to wake ourselves up ❤️
Daffodils sound heavenly! I like to switch things and wake myself up too! Blessings to you, Nannette.
Betsy,
As a working mom with two busy boys my best times with God are in my car. But I do love your ideas about spring. I think I could refresh my time with God by reading his word outside while the kids play. Be blessed. – Kia
Oh yes, time with God in the car redeems the commute back and forth from work, doesn’t it? I love listening to worship music while I drive.
Betsy,
First I love the scripture from Hosea that urges us to “press on to know Him”. I am taking a new Bible study right now called “Grasping God’s Word”. It is helping me to delve into scripture on a level that I’ve never experienced before. How fitting that I am doing it in the springtime!! Great ideas this morning!
Blessings,
Bev
Bev, I’m so glad you’re able to be in a new Bible study! That has encouraged me so much in the past. I’ll have to look that one up. 🙂
Ready for spring! Love this time of year. We’re supposed to have our first sunny, non-rainy weekend in 7 weeks and I can’t wait to get outside with the kids for some fresh air. Although, grateful for all the rain which is filling our reservoirs back up from the drought we’ve been in for so long. Thanks for the boost today and encouragement to let spring renew our spirits.
We had LOTS of rain over the winter, Kathryn, and spring is looking rainy too. I guess we can give thanks that we’re not in a drought. Lots of sunny skies in a drought, but I’d rather have rain, thank you. Where do you live? Are you a Texan too? (I wonder since you mention drought and empty reservoirs…)
Yes, I’m a Texan 😃. Live in Frisco – just north of Dallas.
I love spring and here in Ohio we have had a taste but then the temperatures still drop again. I love your idea of getting outside for a walk. That is an activity that always revives and restores me. The few times i have made it out so far in the last few weeks have been glorious! Thank you for leaving us with hope for the newness of spring! Have a blessed day!
I just got in from a walk right now, and I love it. But yesterday it was rainy and cold. We also have changeable whether where I am in the MidEast. Blessings on your week, friend. Thanks for being here today.
Thank you for this encouragement today! I needed a pick me up! I will be taking it to the back deck and sitting a while. Coffee outside just listening to the birds chirping and admiring the clouds and trees always does my spirit good. My main problem is slowing down long enough to make that happen. Practicing slowing down today! Visiting from #RaRalinkup & a Compel sister in training :). Love & Blessings. I look forward to reading more of your post!
Hi Micah! That’s so funny. I just visited you from #RaRalinkup without knowing you’d been here. I’m so glad you’ve joined Compel. I was in it for a year, and found it to be so helpful. Are you going to She Speaks? (And yes, slowing down is an important part of welcoming spring into our hearts!) Coffee out on the deck sounds lovely.
Betsy, I love the change in seasons for each brings a fresh approach to my early mornings & the start of my days. Yet the change in seasons always reminds that our God never changes. So glad spring is on the way 🙂
Me too, Joanne. I especially love spring, but for some weird reason! I really enjoyed winter this year too. And it was the coldest winter we’ve had in years. Loved it.
Seriously Betsy, just seeing your pictures and reading your words refreshed my soul. It still seems like winter where I am so I felt so encouraged by this post. I can’t wait to get out. Thank you Betsy! Cheering you on from the #RaRalinkup today!
I know what you mean about it still being winter, Kelly. Some days it’s like that here. Hope the weather changes soon in your part of the country!
Like Kelly who’s not too far from me…it still feels like winter here. But a walk through a local greenhouse provided a much needed burst of color. HAPPY! Looking forward to warmer breezes and getting encouragement from your words. #RaRaLinkup xxoo
Now this is a to-do-list worth doing. Thank you for these ideas. I’m on my way to get started!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hope these add more spring to your step!
Yes, there’s something about seeing and feeling sunshine that just makes the heart happy!
I love the tip about marking up your Bible with colored pencils!
I agree, Deborah! Spring makes the heart happy. I’m enjoying marking up my Bible, devised my own system, and it’s adding so much to my understanding of God’s word.
Excellent post! It’s quite evident in this terrible world we’re currently living that’s constantly moving further away from God as we’re moving toward the end of time, it’s nothing more than a clear indication of how much we have to move toward God. In other words, we just have to move against the strong downward current of the world. The way that I see it, the worse things are getting, the more as Christians we should draw close to God in order to strengthen our walk with Christ.
Thanks for your comment. I agree that we need to move closer to God always.
Great advice, Betsy. I’m going to share this with friends! Blessings:)
Thanks, Kristine!
Wonderful ideas, Betsy, especially the “reviving quiet times” portion. It is true. We often need a little prod out of our winter slumber. Nice post. 🙂
On a rainy day like today, it’s easy to ease back into winter slumber, but I want to wake myself up! 🙂
Betsy, you and I have the same blogging schedule – ha! I am next to you today on Meredith’s site. I feel bad because you aren’t getting exposure to a new friend. However, I feel honored to pray for you. Lord, thank you for Betsy. Thank you for her heart for you. Bless the deep desires of her heart. Grant her the needs that she calls out to you for. Speak to her in meaningful ways. I thank you for the beauty that is Betsy. Amen.
Thanks so much for your prayer, Kelly. I receive it!
Love this, Betsy, I so agree with you and have been encouraged to get outside today and worship our Lord ❤️
Hope you enjoyed getting outside! It’s raining here today, but I decided to enjoy it anyway!
Great advice for this new season Betsy! Thank you for sharing this with the community at #raralinkup! 🙂
I saw the title of your post and just had to read it! I’ve got a bleeding heart and a lily of the valley started in the middle of my dining room table, just because I need some spring in my days. Love your emphasis on reading the word out loud. My husband and I are reading through the Bible out loud together this year. Definitely changes the way I think about it. Blessings to you!
Your flowers in the dining room sound lovely, Michele. That’s great that you and your husband are reading out loud! Wonderful!
Here in Nebraska Spring is teasing us. We get a few warm days and then back to the winter cold. But this post reminds me the season of Spring is just around the corner — and so is the Spring of our faith in Easter. Thanks for your words of encouragement and hope!
Oh hang in there, Jenni! I can imagine what Nebraska is like! We’re had one day of sun, one of gray rain, one sunny day, two cool cloudy ones! Spring is coming!
Great ideas for adding spring to my life (I was just thinking I needed to wash the curtains yesterday–around here, it’s a delicate balance between the urge to wash them and the fact that we’ll have horrible dust storms for another month…). I also need to find some good, used porch furniture so that I can move my quiet time out on the porch!
I hope you can find that that furniture! Or at least a table and chair. 🙂 I need to get down some curtains too. Have to do it twice a year at least here in Izmir.
I’m ready, Betsy! This winter was so hard for me, especially since it was the worst health-wise we’d had in a while. I’m finally starting to see the light again. I look doing many of the things you mentioned like spring cleaning and taking walks. I recently started doing a weekly Bible study with a small group of friends and it was been such a blessing. Enjoy this time, friend!
I bet you ARE ready, Abby, after such a hard winter. I’m so glad you’re involved in a Bible study! Yay! Spring is kind of slow in coming here, but I’m trying to get it into my heart! 🙂 Thanks for stopping by today.
Thanks Betsy for a timely post chocked full of encouragement! I really appreciate your tips on reviving the quiet time…applying those today 🙂
I need all the reviving I can get, believe me!
It’s so wonderful isn’t it to see Spring arriving? I love pegging out the first load of outdoor washing at the start of spring! I also like to bring spring indoors with flowers, and tree blossoms. And to refresh our family photos with each season – I’m looking forward to taking some spring photos over the Easter holidays.
Refreshing the family photos is a wonderful idea, Victoria! Never thought of that as a spring activity, but it makes sense! RENEWING the photos! Hope you get some good ones at Easter!
“Read scripture out loud.” – I am going to try that Betsy. I never seem to unless I’m in a group reading passages. Thanks for a beautiful post today to cheer me on with this glorious spring weather! Kim Stewart
http://www.kimstewartinspired.com
I do it sometimes, and for me it makes scripture more real, Hearing it helps me internalize it…But I don’t do it every day!
My favorite of these is Bring Nature Inside. I love having fresh flowers in the house. But all these are good. Come on, spring!
I’m with you, Lisa! Come on, spring!
Beautiful Photo! I finally got my snow – which I loved – and I am now ready for spring -for the blooming and the warmth! I’m wanting to pull myself up early in a morning, go out to my porch with some hot tea and spend time with God’s in the middle of the birds singing and morning waking! I’m not a morning person, but I so want to do this! Shalom in your Spring, Betsy!
~Maryleigh
That sounds beautiful, Maryleigh. I hope going out to the porch to hear the birds adds some zing to your morning! (If you’re not a morning person, you might need it! 🙂 ) Shalom to you too.
love, love, love! Just reading that scripture from the Songs refreshed me! Now to set up a little corner on my balcony! Thanks for linking with Grace and Truth 🙂
Thanks for visiting me here! I enjoy Grace & Truth! May you be refreshed and renewed this Easter!