THE GROUNDHOG HAS SPOKEN
Today is Groundhog Day. Celebrated with great fervor in Pennsylvania, it is a day when everyone watches with bated breath as the famous groundhog, Punxsutawney Phil emerges from his burrow. It’s said that if Phil encounters his shadow, he would retreat back into his burrow and the prediction is for six more weeks of winter. This year he did not see his shadow, which correlates with an early spring. Why does the groundhog retreat into its burrow on seeing its shadow? It is most likely due to fear. It is true that the groundhog is often prodded to come out of his hibernation. If that were the case, it would be no surprise that the groundhog, having been woken from his sleep, would rather retreat back into his burrow. It is in fact more frequent for the groundhog to see his shadow, return to his burrow and forecast a longer winter. Today was quite rare, with an early forecast for spring and the groundhog not seeing his shadow probably had more to do with an overcast sky in the area than anything else. In any case, it is an interesting tradition and signals man’s frustration with the long dreary winter and the expectation of a cheerful spring around the corner.
Life on earth is no less dreary with its share of frustrations and sufferings. Behind the façade of glamor, plenty, popularity and power touted by the celebrities, lays the reality of sorrow, depression, fear and hopelessness. It is hope that drives man forward to the possibility of a better future that he works towards. As man undergoes treatment for his diseases, works hard toward a dream college or a dream job, raises a family, he is hoping that his lot would improve. But ultimately in the face of certain decay and death, hope is only made real with the possibility of eternal life, made certain by faith in Christ. That one day he would be with God forever, where every sorrow would cease and every tear would be wiped away is the ultimate hope that enables him to drudge through the difficulties of life here on earth. Enduring the winter makes sense only if spring is around the corner.
How often does the groundhog get it right? A paltry 39% is the accuracy of its prediction. When it predicts a shorter winter however, it more often right, but no more than 50% of the time. You might as well flip a coin and guess and have a greater chance of predicting the duration of winter! Not so with the Bible and the prophecies therein. It would have been next to impossible for all the predictions about the Messiah in the Bible to come true in the life of one person. The probability of all prophecies being fulfilled in the life of Jesus is likened to filling the entire state of Texas with quarters and then dropping a dime somewhere in between and then being able to pick out the dime with your first pick. Such is the amazing work of God, and the Christian knows that what has been promised to him with respect to eternal life and the second coming will come true without fail.
Yes, spring is around the corner and enduring the winter makes sense because no eye has seen, no ear has heard and no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him.
