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| Photo from Pixabay |
It seems like it's been a really long winter here this year. We've had spring as early as February here in southern Missouri some years. I remember once, 10 or 11 years ago, we had snow on May fifth. Quite unusual. It didn't stay long, but it did get our attention.
This year, winter and spring have been battling it out. We'll have 80 degrees one day and a few days later will be in the 30s. A few weeks ago, when we thought all was well, planted a long row of phlox in our front flower bed. Unfortunately, we ended up getting really cold weather again, and they went into shock. We've cut them back and fertilize them in hopes that they will revive. They're not looking good, but maybe.
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| Photo from Pixabay |
“Laura felt a warmth inside her. It was very small, but it was strong. It was steady, like a tiny light in the dark, and it burned very low but no winds could make it flicker because it would not give up.”
~ Laura Ingalls Wilder, The Long Winter
Here we are at the beginning of May.
Today has actually been very pretty. The air is cool, but the sun is warm. Our neighbors' flowering bushes and trees are beautiful. Unfortunately, our tulip tree tried to bloom at the wrong time and lost all of its buds. It's a shame. That tree was one of the reasons I loved the place when we found it 3 years ago. I look forward to seeing it bloom each spring.
In a way, the wrestling between good and evil that is all around us, and even in us, reminds me of the battle between spring and winter this year. Although we know that ultimately good wins over evil, there are times when we feel the cold sadness or fear or doubt creep in just like the plunging temperatures when winter is trying to reassert its claim.
Those of us who believe in God, in Jesus Christ, in the Bible, have assurance this battle will indeed and in our victory. One of my friends died recently. She's a dear friend who, like me, battled cancer. Deborah fought hard and valiantly physically and spiritually. She loves the Lord with all her heart and all her strength. She fought the good fight she ran the race she won. Sometimes our healing comes fully in heaven. Sometimes we continue on here completely healed, in some way scarred, or continuing the fight.
Statistically, you are probably in some kind of struggle yourself right now. It might be a struggle with depression, with fear, with family problems, with an addiction, with financial or legal troubles. It could be many things. When we depend on Jesus completely, when we give him our first attention and our first Allegiance, he changes us. He changes the way we think. He changes our perspective. He provides in miraculous ways. He brings healing in relationships and physical healing. And when he doesn't, he brings the strength and the courage and the grace to walk through whatever the situation is in our lives.
I can tell you this for sure. I have walked with God, and I have walked without God. I do not want to live without God in my life. He has changed me and changed my circumstances so drastically. He has been so good to me even when I hurt. Even when I don't understand what's going on, he's always leading me through and bringing about something better for me, because I love him. He always brings me through. If you love him, too, he'll always bring you through, too.
God bless you!
Laura
“Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken.” Psalm 55:22
“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the LORD, ‘My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.’” Psalm 91:1-2
