Springtime

Chris Renzema's “Springtime” uses the seasons to describe resurrection. It starts by naming Jesus: “You're the resurrection that we've waited for. You buried the night and came with the morning.” The longer the quiet lasts, the verse says, “the louder the chorus.”

The chorus carries the main picture, in which winter is death and spring is new life. “’Cause death is dead and gone with the winter. Let Hallelujahs flow like a river. We're coming back to life, reaching toward the light.” It ends with a plain statement that God's love is like springtime. The second verse moves to thirst and growth, calling Jesus the living water for whom “the dry and the barren will flower and bloom.” He is the sun that shines and the one who restores the soul. The bridge is a prayer to “come tend the soil of my soul,” and the singer imagines becoming a garden that keeps growing. The melody is gentle and open, with a sing-along vocal line that helps a congregation join in. It fits Easter, but also any season when someone feels dormant and wants to ask God to bring life back.

Restoring the soul is Psalm 23:3. A watered garden is Isaiah 58:11, and a spring of water welling up to eternal life is John 4:14.