Nat-a-lie A. Sleeth , 1986 ( MIDI , NWC , PDF ). She wrote this se-lect-ion in Feb-ru-a-ry 1985 as a chor-al an-them, & lat-er adapt-ed it as a hymn. She wrote that she was ...pon-der-ing the death of a friend (life and death, death and re-sur-rect-ion), pon-der-ing win-ter and spring (seem-ing op-po-sites), and a T. S. El-i-ot poem which had the phrase, 'In our end is our be-gin-ning.' These seem-ing-ly con-tra-dic-to-ry 'pairs' led to the the-sis of the song and the hope-ful mes-sage that out of one will come the other when-ev-er God choos-es to bring that about. Her hus-band, Dr. Ron-ald Sleeth, heard Hymn of Prom-ise short-ly be-fore he died, & asked that it be sung at his fun-er-al. In the bulb there is a flower; in the seed, an apple tree; In cocoons, a hidden promise: butterflies will soon be free! In the cold and snow of winter there's a spring that waits to be, Unrevealed until its season, something God alone can see. There's a song in every silence, seeking word and melody; There's a dawn in every darkness, bringing hope to you and me. From the past will come the future; what it holds, a mystery, Unrevealed until its season, something God alone can see. In our end is our beginning; in our time, infinity; In our doubt there is believing; in our life, eternity, In our death, a resurrection; at the last, a victory, Unrevealed until its season, something God alone can see. The