Beneath the Surface

Near our home, there’s a trail that runs through several marshy areas. It’s interesting to see how these wetlands change through the seasons. About three weeks ago, while taking a walk, I paused to study the marsh.

There was still some ice on the pond. The monochromatic landscape looked bleak and lifeless. There was no discernible movement. It was silent. My senses told me that nothing was happening there, but my experience told me differently. Beneath the surface, under those dry reeds and thin ice, I knew there was a whole world waiting to burst into life.

My experience told me: “Just wait.”

One week later, the ice was gone. The mallards were back, paddling and dabbling their way around the pond.

Two weeks later, the red-winged blackbirds returned in force. The males were there, flashing their red wing patches from cattail perches and calling out warnings to defend their territories.

Then, earlier this week, I knew that spring was truly here, because when I walked through the marsh, I heard the loud and raucous mating calls of the wood frogs. (Click to hear and see them!) These amphibious friends aren’t much to look at but they are tough guys. They are the only frogs that exist north of the Arctic Circle. In the winter, ice crystals form in their bodies but they have a special “antifreeze” that keeps their cells from actually freezing. In the winter, they stop breathing. Their hearts stop beating. They seem to be dead. But if we just wait, they will emerge, one of the most reliable signs of spring in the marsh.

Watching the seasons in the marsh reminds me that sometimes in life, things are not as they seem on the surface. It reminds me of Easter and the resurrection. When Jesus entered Jerusalem for the Passover feast, things were looking great. He arrived in Jerusalem to crowds of people swarming around him, cheering, admiring, and proclaiming “Hosanna”! Then, things took a drastic turn for the worse. Jesus was arrested, questioned, and tortured. Finally, he was led away to be crucified. His followers were suddenly alone and confused. Their leader was gone, and their hope was gone as well. Jesus was dead, his body in a tomb, a giant stone securing the entrance, and an armed guard posted in front.

But just wait.

Things on the surface are not always as they seem.

When the women went to the tomb a few days later, they found the stone rolled away. They peered inside. All they saw were folded graveclothes. No body. No dead Jesus.

In the Gospel of Matthew, it says that an angel appeared to the women and said, “I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here. He has risen, just as he said!”

At the present time, the whole world is facing a crisis, a pandemic called Covid-19. We are hunkering down, staying in our houses. We are covering our faces with masks to protect ourselves and others. All over the world, people are sick and dying due to this virus. Things certainly look bleak. Perhaps it seems that the situation is hopeless.

But just wait.

When the people shouted “Hosanna” as Jesus entered Jerusalem, they were echoing something found in the Psalms, but they were using a phrase that originally meant “Help! Save us!” as a form of praise, proclaiming that Jesus was the Savior, the one who could rescue them, the one who would save them.

He is still the One.

Make no mistake, God is still on his throne.

He’s not wringing his hands in worry over this epidemic.

He’s still in charge.

Our Hope is not gone.

He is Risen.

Hosanna!