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Winter Beauty
January
has its own beauty for us who live in the country. We see the bare
branches as lovely works of art when decorated by newly fallen snow, or
when cased in ice with the sun reluctantly shining through their limbs. We
see the meadow with its frozen grass standing straight and looking as if
sprinkled with diamond dust. We hear the melody of the water in the brook
softly running under a sheath of ice. We know the beauty of a dark night
with only the stars to light up the vast sky. What a picture the
moonlight shadows create, stretching across the fallen snow, and even if
there is no moon, we see the silvery light from the snow itself.
We
country folks know the delicate marks of the pheasant, a rabbit, and the
rare shape of a deer’s footprint stamped in the snow. We recognize the
sounds and fragrance of winter because it is far different from any other
time and season. A heavy snow filters out the harshness of noise and
leaves us with a warm feeling of peace and contentment inside our homes,
while we enjoy a cup of hot tea, or as Elsie Hough says, “A cup of hot
coffee.”
When I look upon a newly fallen snow untouched and unmarred, I think of
the pure, clean, sinless Robe of Christ. It does not take long for
animal and man to mar the beauty and cleanliness of snow, but the purity
of Christ cannot be marred. There are those who try to destroy Him every
day, but they cannot; they will never be able to touch Him. No
matter what manner of sin they use to try to disprove Him, He will remain
the “Spotless Lamb of God.”
Although I do not like snow and simply hate the cold weather, I must
listen when God reminds me, “All seasons are Mine.” He whispers, “Take
each one as it comes and be proud of every day I lend you.” He also
reminds me, “Your days are numbered on earth.”
Therefore, I do thank God for the days He gives me to be with my family
and friends, and I am trying to like some things about winter; God knows
my heart. He knows I am looking forward to warmer weather. He will help
me through the depressing times while I am slipping and sliding through
these cold days and nights, and I will no more than turn around until the
warm days of spring will slip down from the hills and come dancing across
the fields. I will look up and see all those bulbs I planted last fall
sprout up and come alive with color just in time to welcome the little
birds back home. My backyard will come alive with a symphony from the
tweeters. My roses will bloom again.
I
will put away the three sweaters, two coats, snow boots, thick socks,
denim pants, hat and gloves, and long johns I wore (All at the same time!)
this winter. I will sit back in the rocking chair on my front porch
and enjoy the sights and sounds around me, especially the weather.
Paul said, “I have learned in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be
content.”
It
has taken me a lot of years to learn I still am not living contentedly in
the moment; I’m still dwelling on the "good ol’ days", daydreaming on what
I could have had, if only….not really living in the now. I have good
intentions of starting out each day as being the best day of my life,
then, I blow it -- I start worrying about stuff.
Each New Year, I find myself asking the same old question, “Lord, what
will this year bring? Will we be blown away by a terrorist group, or
will the country fall into a deep depression? What will happen with the
wars raging, how many more of our men and women will lose their lives?”
All these things floated around in my head for the entire day of January
1, 2010. Then, I picked up my Bible and started reading. I
don’t know why I chose to read from Deuteronomy, but I did. This is
beautiful scripture. Please mark and read the whole chapter 11, when you
have your devotional time. I am starting at verses 11-15 (This is
Moses addressing the people)
11….But
the land, whither ye go to possess it, is a land of hills and valleys, and
drinketh water of the rain of heaven: 12... A land of which the Lord thy
God careth for: the eyes of the Lord thy God are always upon it, from the
beginning of the year even unto the end of the year. 13…And it shall come
to pass, if ye shall harken diligently unto my commandments which I
command you this day, to love the Lord your God, and to serve him with all
your heart and with all your soul….14…That I will give you rain of your
land in his due season, the first rain and the latter rain, that thou
mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil….15…And I will send
grass in thy fields for thy cattle, and thou mayest eat and be full.
This whole chapter speaks of obeying God. If we are doing so, He will
take care of His own. No matter what may rage around us, if we obey His
commandments and love Him with all our heart and soul, we have nothing to
fear. Disasters will come this year, and things will occur to put us in a
state panic I feel sure, but with God on our side…we will be safe….verse
22-23…For if ye shall diligently keep all these commandments which I
command you…Then will the Lord drive out all these nations from before
you, and ye shall possess greater nations and mightier than yourselves….
Our nation has fallen away from God. The eyes of America are looking in
the wrong places, but God has not forgotten His true followers. He will
lead us through any disaster, will hear our prayers and provide our needs,
accordingly.
This land is a land of hills and valleys. Our life is not
all smooth and downhill. We must have some of the rough and uphill stuff,
too. If we did not, we would grow slack in remembering to Thank
Him for the blessing. It is the hill difficulties that
drive us to the throne of grace. The bleak hills of life that we wonder
about, worry about, and perhaps spend a lot of time grumbling about, are
the very showers that rain down the showers of blessings. We do not
know what trials and sorrows we have coming this year; we do not know what
our loss will be, but we can rest assured that our Father will come to
take our hand and lead us on the pathway we must go whatever may happen.
With Him holding our hand, it will be a blessed new year, all year.
Mary King
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UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU
Around the corner I have a friend,
In this great city that has no end.
Days go by and weeks rush on,
And before I know it, a year is gone.
Seems I never see my old friends face,
For life is a swift and terrible race,
He knows I like him just as well,
As in the days when I rang his bell,
And he rang mine; but we were younger then.
Now we are busy, tired old men.
Tired of playing a foolish game,
Tired of trying to make a name.
“Tomorrow,” I say! I will call on Jim
Just to show that I’m thinking of him.”
But tomorrow comes and tomorrow goes,
And the distance between us, grows and grows.
Around the corner, miles away,
“Here’s a telegram for you sir, it reads,
“Jim died today.”
That’s what we get at the very end,
Around the corner, a vanished friend.
Never put off telling someone what they mean to you,
Because when you decide when is the right time, it just might be too late.
Seize the day, never have regrets. Most importantly, stay close to your
friends.
For they have had a hand in making you the person you are today.
Author unknown. |