Winters of our life

This past week we've been reminded that winter can be a harsh force of nature. Rain becomes freezing rain that becomes ice that is followed by snow. The freezing fog adds to the beauty of the landscape and wonderful pictures show us how amazing this wintry landscape can be. It is beautiful and I often wonder how all this beauty can be so destructive.

As we have seen, the weight of nature's beauty can splinter ancient trees, cause roofs to collapse, and snap power poles like toothpicks. The slippery surfaces can bring the most sure-footed of us to suffer mild concussions and broken limbs. The best drivers collide with the not so experienced. Businesses suffer when people can't get out to shop. School children complain that they will have to attend classes beyond Memorial Day...OMG!

All this beauty and yet all this suffering. Why would God allow this to happen? I thought God loved us...Why does he allow power lines to snap and keep us in the dark? I thought God would care for us...Why do we not have heat and stoves to cook on? Why? Because it's winter and that's what happens in the winter: we sometimes experience bad weather and we sometimes lose access to the conveniences that God allowed us to invent in the first place. God does not "allow" these things to "happen" to us. God created a perfect universe where everything cycles, the seasons change, and sometimes we get ice and snow. That's just how the world works. I imagine that we will soon be saying things like: "All that snow sure was good for the wheat crop!"

Instead of asking why and bemoaning the winter of our life, I think we should recognize all the wonder of God's Creation and the good things that God has enabled in the midst of the storm.

Many of our friends and neighbors needed help and we were able to reach out to offer assistance. We huddled together for warmth and shared our kitchens for nourishment. We enjoyed great fellowship while the TV and computer lacked power to distract us. We shared stories about the last such winter storm that stopped everything cold, or the time we built a snowman, or the snow ice cream recipe Grandma used when we were little. Isn't it interesting how much we can learn about our friends and neighbors when we take the time to talk to them without the television, the iPod, or the Wii in the way?!

God may actually have had a plan this winter to bring his people together in the midst of a storm. It wouldn't be the first time that God has gathered his people together in the middle of some hardship. Maybe God thought we needed a break from all the electronics. Maybe God thought we could learn to be better friends and neighbors if we actually had to depend on one another for a few days. Maybe God simply wanted the seasons to change. It's winter! Why ask "why?" Enjoy the beauty, be thankful for the moisture, remember what you learned, and try to stay warm and safe. It's winter, it is not the end of the world and God has not abandoned us. On the contrary, God has enabled us to be God's people in the midst of every season of our lives.

Amen!