Last week, I was privileged to have moments by the window with coffee while it was snowing. It was quiet…the kind of peaceful quiet that only comes when watching snow blanketing the ground. In that moment, I was reminded that I am one of those snowflakes–here and gone in an instant with no clear mark on the world. The Bible says we are as dust, as grass before God…we spring up and are gone. Oh, how I need that reminder when I am weary and feel the sadness of relationships and the exhaustion of ministry. I think I am so important…that life hangs in the balance because of me, and then God uses a beautiful snowflake to remind me of the lesson that he is Everything and I am not. There is great comfort in that. He is the reason…he upholds me, gives me strength, wins the battle. I cling and follow and he gives me the privilege of knowing him and becoming more like him. I am also reminded that this too will pass, and in a moment’s time, I will be with him in eternity. Oh, how I long for that. In this brief span of time, he invites me to depend on him loving him and loving others. He invites me to do it in his holy and wise ways–not mine. He molds me to trust and know his ways are far better than mine. I will be in that process until I melt like that snowflake. I will also need to be reminded of the lesson of the snowflake hour by hour. His word and Spirit are my guide as I am easily deceived in thinking that I have blown it or that I have to fix everything. He lovingly reminds me that there is forgiveness for my sins and that I do not have to earn my way back into his presence. He calls me to repentance and trust and obedience. May I remember that today.
The Art of Coming Alive 