Good morning, world. Things are looking pretty good from the front porch of my farm in Virginia today. It was warm and windy for a few days last week and the Lord removed all signs of our recent snow..but things can change overnight. This morning the flags on the front porch were frozen and each little breeze caused them to crack. One day they’re blowing in the breeze and the next day they’re inhibited by ice. The drastic temperature differences in Virginia aren’t always easy to adjust to but I wouldn’t have it any other way. As I met with the Author and Perfecter of my Faith this morning, the drastic changes from warm temperatures to frozen flags on the porch kept running through my mind and I realized that this is the way it is with Life. One minute it’s warm and cozy and the next minute it’s cold as ice and that’s not so easy to adjust to either. But as long as we know how to prepare for the changes, and as long as we know Life is Destined to change overnight sometimes, we don’t fight against the flow of the Hand of God. We aren’t promised smooth sailing all the days of our lives but we ARE Promised an easy ride if we cling to the Will of a Mighty God frozen flags and all. Isn’t that the way it is with you sometimes too?

It’s mind-boggling how much people have to say about the weather. Second to politics (these days) they seem to talk about the weather more than anything else…including God. When you think about it, there are similarities in how people handle something as simple as the weather and how they handle Life. Virginia has four beautiful seasons and I wouldn’t trade them for a one-season, constant-temperature place for anything in the world. I like the drastic differences of the seasons, and the beauty that each one brings makes me appreciate the others even more. It’s as if God designed the timing of each season so that just when we think we’ve had enough, we switch to a new one with its own unique beauty…AND its own unique challenges. When it comes to this Journey called Life, the ONLY constant we have is the Living God. He’s the same “yesterday, today, and forever more” but everything else is subject to drastic change in the blink of an eye. Life can go from warm and cozy to cold as ice faster than we can say “Amen”- and it’s only when we accept that God Almighty has a Master Plan that we can find our Peace no matter the Temperature.

Some people cringe at the mere thought of freezing temperatures as if they’d be forced to sleep outside. Some people begin to sweat at the mere mention of higher temperatures as if they’d be forced to scorch in the sun. Some people run from the rain and others run from the snow and most of the rest are thrown for a loop when they experience a drastic change in either direction. I believe if we’d pause to consider how we handle something as unpredictable as the weather, we’d see some similarities in how we handle our Unpredictable Life too. Some dread the changes before they ever happen. Some lie awake at night imagining the worst. Some run and try to hide, while others are thrown for a loop when things drastically change overnight as if they thought things would always be the same. But nothing is the same except God Almighty, and He’s forever changing things around for His Purpose. He brings the storms to raise our Core Temperature and He’ll make it rain in our lives for as long as He thinks we need it. But just like the four seasons in Virginia…just when we think we’ve had enough, God brings the New Season along with its own Beauty and its own set of Challenges. It’s a wonderful Life when we understand that it comes with Drastic Changes and when we’re willing to surrender to the Will of an Amazing God no matter what.

God used the drastic change in the weather to Remind me that He’s the ONLY constant in my Life. He’s the same yesterday, today, AND FOREVERMORE and He’ll be there for me through it all. When my Life goes from warm and cozy to cold as ice I won’t whine or run, because I’ve lived through His Changes countless Times and I Trust His Plans for me. Just when I think I’ve “had enough” He’ll change the Season in His Time…a Season with beauty of its own and a whole new set of Challenges.

How about you?