Life in the dormant Magnolia

I have a small magnolia tree in my front yard garden. It always impresses me. In the spring, before the leaves have made their appearance, the tree fills up with gorgeous hot pink flowers. I love it! In the fall though, the flowers are long past their time, and the leaves have fallen off to leave barren branches. It matches the surrounding plant and tree life, and begins to look lifeless. But, there is lovely little feature of the magnolia that I've discovered, and now love to see. Once the leaves fall off and the tree lies dormant for the season of snow and cold, and life seems to have left it, the tree forms new flower buds all over it. Not a branch is left empty. I've learned that these are the flower buds for next spring, already starting to grow. It's a nice promise to see when every other plant is looking so void of life. My magnolia shows the promise of new life. There is the glimmer of hope and sunshine, even in a season of dormancy, and sometimes struggle. The air has turned cold, snow has fallen, and frigid winds have torn through the yard, tossing things around. Yet, the little magnolia stands strong, holding life and the promise of beauty on every branch.
I love the message in that. Through the struggles we have, the seasons of dormancy and pain, we have a hope. A hope for new life as well. In the struggle, it's hard to see the promise of new life and sunshine, but we can know that there will be a time of reviving, and refreshing. God offers that to us. We just need to bask in His glory a little bit. The light that He offers will bring newness and beauty. And through the hard seasons we can cling to His hope and peace, and find that life, real life, is never far from us. We too, can blossom even in the times when the cold wind blows and life seems dormant. There is comfort in that.