So, tis January 2nd, and my “Winter Blahs Blog” hath begun!
The reason I am doing this (this being: writing about how to make it through the winter every day) is because winter is my least favorite season, and that is putting it nicely. Winter is hard for me on every level, and for a variety of reasons…but this year as it was coming, I felt the Lord saying to not dread it, but embrace it, that He would be there in the midst of it. And He already has been, in a big way! For me, there are tons of parallels to the Lord hidden in each of the seasons. Unfortunately, winter usually parallels to me to be a time of cold, dead, harsh difficulty, both physically and spiritually, like a suffering you just have to go through. I have a hard time enjoying the beauty of winter, because all I can see is the absence of the things I love: green, warm, sun, color. And without beauty, it’s hard to relax. I don’t feel unfolded before the Lord, I feel tired and frozen in the winter; some people call these times “winters of the soul”. I totally get that phrase, and of course these winters don’t just happen in the winter! Well…
Today at church a girl got up and shared how God has spoken to her recently. She mentioned this movie she had seen about this dog that was taken in and loved by this man, but the man died, and the dog just kept going back to that same spot anyway, looking for him, waiting for him, whether he came or not. As I listened to this, I thought, “I want to be like that dog. I want to go to the Lord and sit at His feet whether He looks my way or not. I want to go whether He shows up or not. I have to stay there, regardless of what He does, that is my destiny.” Now, I believe God is always there…He’s there long before I come to Him. But sometimes we worship how He makes us feel; we worship the dreams, revelations, new teachings, feelings, words of encouragement, even words of rebuke. But Jesus wants all-weather friends. He wants those who will sit on the icy bench in the garden, whether they feel His warm embrace or not.
So this winter, let it get as cold and miserable as it wants…physically, spiritually, whatever. We will come to the Lord for everything, and He will be exactly what we need, even if that means we still feel cold inside and out after we come. There is no doubt in my heart and mind that if we keep coming, His heart will be so overjoyed that it will spill over onto us in due time.
