The Wind of Winter, the Calm of Spring

Alas comes March, with April on its heels. Here in Michigan, March and April can still bring snow and ice. The old saying is, “if you don’t like the weather, wait a few hours.”

I think of Percy Bysshe Shelley, the English poet who wrote: “Oh, wind, if winter comes, can spring be far behind.”

We’re all hoping that the Corona pandemic slides into the past and we start moving forward with our lives as they once were. For me, the year of isolation from family and friends has been shrouded in a new experience of reality — the reality that life and happiness depends upon how we manage it. I say this because in the darkest months of fear and concerns — when it seemed little mattered except surviving and staying well — I found the warmth of a cup of coffee, the simple taste of bread and butter, the comfort of my favorite chair, and the cozy bed I sleep in were the “hierarchy”. For certain, the mind is its own place, and in itself can make a Heaven of Hell, or a Hell of Heaven (Poet, John Milton). The choice is ours.

Slowly my perspectives changed in the last 12 months. No longer did I consider a shopping trip and a pedicure a “must have“. Dreaming of basking in the sun on a Caribbean island was no longer a craving desire. Instead, I became mindful that the provisions I had were more than sufficient, and most of my comfortable life had been taken for granted. I moved into a new awareness.

I had a strong sense that a great deal of my life centered on frivolous things, and a good portion of it was marked by an air of assumed importance. I realized that no matter how strong a person or a nation seems, it could come to ruin in a flash.

So, with spring soon to arrive and the hope of new freedom (if the vaccine works), I want to move forward with a better grasp of what is important. I trust you will too.

With all that said, the most important thing I learned this past year is that deliverance from fear and loneliness is found in faith in Jesus Christ. He definitely meant it when He said: “Come unto Me and I will give you rest.” He came through with that promise!

Without a doubt, our sweetest songs and most glorious memories often come out of the saddest, most frightening times.

Grab TODAY, and make the best of it!

Blessings to you all.