When the Jacarandas Bloom: A South African Christian Reflection on Spring, New Seasons, and the God Who Makes Things New

There is a fortnight every October when Johannesburg becomes the most beautiful city in the southern hemisphere. The jacarandas come out. The streets of Pretoria, Sandton, and the older suburbs turn purple. For two or three weeks, the city looks like something from a different world.

The Christian in Johannesburg does not have to make a theology out of the jacarandas. The Christian in Johannesburg does, however, have the right to notice them. The Bible has a great deal to say about seasons. The Bible has even more to say about the God who makes things new.

What the Bible Actually Says About Seasons

Genesis 1:14 — lights to mark sacred times and seasons. Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 — a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens. Genesis 8:22 — seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease. Psalm 104:19 — He made the moon to mark the seasons. The Bible treats the changing of seasons as a confession of faith. To believe in seasons is to believe that the cold does not last forever.

What the Bible Says About the God Who Makes Things New

Isaiah 43:19 — See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? Lamentations 3:22-23 — his compassions never fail. They are new every morning. 2 Corinthians 5:17 — the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! Revelation 21:5 — I am making everything new! Ezekiel 36:26 — I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you. The Christian in Johannesburg in October does not have to invent the theology of new beginnings. The theology is already there.

What the Spring in Johannesburg Actually Looks Like

The first thunderstorm — Job 37:2-5, God speaks in the thunderstorm. The first mpho (first fruit) — Proverbs 3:9-10, honour the Lord with the firstfruits. The first walk without a jacket — Song of Songs 2:11-12, See! The winter is past; the rains are over and gone. The first garden — Genesis 2:8, John 19:41-42, John 20:15, the garden is where the Christian story begins and begins again.

Why the Long Winter Is Sometimes the Point

Habakkuk 2:3 — it will certainly come and will not delay. Galatians 6:9 — at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. James 5:7-8 — See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. The Christian who has been through the winter knows that the spring is not automatic. The Christian who has been through the winter knows that the spring is a gift.

Five Practices for the Christian Who Is in the Winter

Notice the light. Plant one thing. Read Isaiah 43 slowly. Call someone older. Show up at the Bible study. The Christian who plants in October is practising a kind of faith that does not need to be explained. The Christian who shows up on a Wednesday in October in Sandton is practising the kind of community the Bible calls church.