Enduring winter

Here is a trustworthy saying: If we died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will also disown us; (2 Timothy 2:11, 12 NIV)

I have the winter blahs. I need SPRING. This weekend we change our clocks to daylight savings time. Usually it's a sure sign of spring. With the thick snow pack still on the ground it's not easy to see the warm freshness of spring in our future. Yet, yesterday it was 40 degrees. The forecast for the week to come is possible 50's. The newness and hope of Spring is such a critical time. 

We need hope. We need something that gets us through the winters of our life. Christ can do that for you. My hope is in him. I can get motivation to endure tough times by praising God for his perfect plan. I can get to betters times by remembering the obstacles I've overcome. God has been wonderfully faithful and blessed me in my life. He will help navigate rough waters. We will grow in our knowledge and faith in him. 

Praise God for the good times and bad!

My changing season!

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. (Psalm 19:1-3 NIV)

It's December 2nd and winter is drawing near. The temperatures are falling, the leaves are gone. Christmas lights are up and the house is nearly decorated to celebrate the birth of Jesus. It's all beautifully choreographed year after year. I love the seasons and the change. This might be strange coming from a biker who longs for the open road. But, I learn to appreciate the warmth of a summer ride because of the dark, cold winter. I also love the beauty of snow falling and the fury of a blizzard. It makes the freshness of that first Spring day even sweeter. The tests and challenges of winter speak to my heart. Winter reveals much. It reveals it without words but it speaks clear.

God speaks to us with the relentless changing of the seasons. My life is his and he leads me through the same changes that mark the seasons. My seasons are not ushered in by the changing weather, they come from the march of time. While I was laboring yesterday putting up Christmas lights, fighting the ladder, and my patience, I came to realize I'm not going to be able to do this forever. After my 15th trip to the attic, I realized my body can't handle these events as it once did. Like winter, the seasons of my own life are changing. I tire more easily, my fatigue after 5days of Thanksgiving travel was nearly more than I could bear. Yet, as I end  this long extended weekend, I appreciate even more the joy of this holiday season. I don't anticipate this being my last, but I have seen more than I have ahead of me. I appreciate and Praise God for the joy of this season. I praise him for my glorious life and the many blessings I have been given. 

It is with great joy and satisfaction that I anticipate the changing of the seasons in my life. I expect to have many more years of life on this planet, but the seasons of my life ARE changing, I feel it in my heart as well as my bones! I do not fear the changes ahead of me. I don't look at them with sadness. I look to them with the same excitement and anticipation I have for the onslaught of winter or the freshness of spring. Praise God for the certainty of time and the changes in our lives!

Checking the clouds? Winter is coming!

“I am,” said Jesus. “And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.” (Mark 14:62 NIV)

It's going to happen. When we least expect it, Jesus will return. Until then, we wait. We don't wait in fear or anxiety, we wait with great, joyous anticipation. It could be before we wake. It could be at the break of dawn. Are you ready? I am! 

I had a really busy day today. It's the first day of Fall. There was a coolness in the air. I cleaned all the outside windows, put up the fall decorations, and made ready for the change in weather. I cleaned out the garage to make sure we have room to park the car inside and I changed the oil for the last time on Vic. I also blew up my lawn mower. (It could have waited another month!) I will continue to make preparations for winter.

I wish people knew as much about the coming of Jesus as they know about the coming of winter. Most people don't give it a second thought. The Bible says we need to be ready and look for the signs. Be prepared!  Get ready, he's coming in the clouds. Be ready to enter paradise. Help others get ready like there is no tomorrow! It could be your last!