I found this handy dandy guide that will help you drive in the snow if you live in the South and have never driven in snow before. Or if you have driven in snow before and it didn’t end well.
It helps if you grew up Baptist. It’s not essential to understanding the analogy, but it certainly helps.
Now you know how to drive in the snow. And you’re probably really hungry by now.
“Dear God, as I lay me down to sleep, relax the tension of my body; calm the restlessness of my mind; still the thoughts which worry and perplex me. Help me to rest myself and all my problems in your strong and loving arms. Let your Spirit speak to my mind and heart while I am asleep, so that, when I wake up in the morning, I may find that I have received in the night-time, light for my way; strength for my tasks; peace for my worries; forgiveness for my sins. Grant me sleep tonight, and tomorrow power to live” (Author Unknown).
Sometimes, the anxiety just won’t go away. The sad truth is that worry is the default setting for most of us. We don’t how to train ourselves on how to fret — that comes naturally. We do have to discipline and train ourselves in ways to relax and destress.
But we have the promise of the Prince of a peace that passes all understanding. We have Jesus’ invitation for all who are burdened and heavy-laden to come and find rest. We know that God’s truth is more real than anything that we think or feel.
The best news is that any anxiety is temporary but the true peace and joy that comes from God is forever. This light and momentary affliction will soon yield to an eternal weight of glory far beyond anything we endure that brings anxiety. Hope and help are on the way.
Kudos to whoever thought up the concept of coffee. I was late to the game, but I now depend on this concoction to get me going in the mornings. A day without coffee is like . . . who am I kidding? I have no idea.
The kind of coffee determines how I take it. If it’s the regular Folger’s, then I will typically add some kind of creamer. If it’s a Fresh Market flavored coffee or a light roast, then I will only add sugar. As long as it’s not decaf, then I’m good to go.
But as you who drink coffee know, that first sip in the morning is like a tonic for the soul. It goes to a place inside me where all my happiness lives and awakens me and helps me do all the adulting for the next 24 hours.
It may be a bad morning. Everything else may be going wrong, but if I have that first cup of coffee, I know that the day will eventually get better. My office might literally fall apart around me, but at least I won’t be sleepy.
So whoever invented coffee should probably have a holiday. I don’t mean one of those wimpy holidays that only get stuck on calendars. I mean the kind where everyone gets a day off of work and no mail runs and everyone rejoices. And I can drink more coffee.
“Christ delivered us when bound,
And, when wounded,
healed our wound,
Sought us wandering, set us right,
Turned our darkness into light.
Can a mother’s tender care
Cease towards the child she bare?
Yes, she may forgetful prove;
He will never cease to love.
His is an unchanging love,
Higher than the heights above,
Deeper than the depths beneath,
Free and faithful, strong as death.
We shall see His glory soon,
When the work of grace is done,
Partners of His throne above;
Such to us His wondrous love!
This alone is our complaint,
That our love is weak and faint;
Yet we love Him, and adore,
O for grace to love Him more!” (William Cowper/John Bacchus Dykes).
Well, it’s official. Tomorrow, I go back to the office. My so-called “snow”cation is over.
I have to say that I was disappointed. I think I want my money back. Or I want the money I didn’t make from not working those 5 days.
I never thought I’d be so thrilled to be going places like Publix and Taco Bell, but when you’re basically snowed in and the roads are treacherously icy (at least in my neighborhood), then you get used to looking out the windows at all the pretty snow. And not much else.
But tomorrow, reality returns. You might say that this is like hitting the reset button to 2024 and tomorrow is like the second New Year’s Day. If you like, you can start over on all those resolutions that you made that crashed and burned by week two. Or you can make new resolutions.
I for one am still looking forward to all that 2024 will teach me. Or more accurately, all that God will teach me in 2024. I’m hoping that it won’t just be another 365 or so pages that I tear off my calendar but a year that finds me growing a year older and wiser. A year that finds me more like Jesus on December 31 than I was on January 1.
It will take a little time to readjust to the routine. It will take a couple of nights before I get used to the new sleep cycle. I will more than likely have a bazillion emails waiting for me at work. But on the bright side, I have a car to get me to work and a job waiting for me when I get there. That’s worth the routine, I think.
Before this week, I never thought I’d be as excited as I was to visit Aldi’s and Taco Bell, though not necessarily in that order. I was just really tired of being snowed in and looking at icy roads all day.
I visited the infamous Mystery Aisle at Aldi’s, otherwise known as the Aisle of Shame for all the unplanned and spontaneous purchases that people make when they see all the random items in one aisle. I myself got a coffee canister because it was $10 (and not because I necessarily needed it).
Even Taco Bell tasted better for all the snow. I don’t remember the quesadillas being as spicy before, but maybe my taste buds have regressed this winter.
It’s amazing to me that God uses even things like snow and ice to teach me patience. Not that I ever thought that I was the patron saint of patience, but I thought I had more than I did until I didn’t. That is, I realized just how quickly I can go stir-crazy instead of using my time more wisely. I have the attention span of a three year old, I think.
I did listen to records, which is always a calming and relaxing activity for me. I didn’t quite manage to get to all that reading I had stated earlier that I was going to do. I managed to stay current on my Bible reading plan for the year, which is always a plus.
But for once, it’d be nice to learn patience by discovering that I have it rather by realizing that I don’t. That would be nice for a change.
I figured out it’s been a while since I actually had to look for a car. The car that I’ve had for the past 10 years was my Mom’s old car that they sold to me when they got a new car. That was in 2013. Before that, I found out my cousin was selling his old Jeep that he had barely ever driven. That was in 2003.
Before that, I can’t really remember. I had a 1988 Ford Taurus for my very first car that I think I bought from a used car dealership. Then I got another Taurus, this one a 1993. I remember very little about the actual process. I remember looking at a few cars that seemed like a good idea to me at the time but probably wouldn’t have worked out. One was an older BMW convertible with a non-working A/C. One was a car brand that didn’t even exist anymore but looked cool and had leather seats.
I’ve learned to trust God’s timing in all things, not just in car shopping. In my experience, God usually never gives me what I ask for when I ask for it. Or it seems like my requests take a long time to reach God’s ear.
But I can attest that God’s provision is never a moment too late. I can trust that God’s denials can be as much of a blessing and a grace as God’s gifts, though they may not seem like it at the time.
Today, I looked at a 2021 Jeep Wrangler. It looked great, but there were a couple of red flags that made me hesitate. So the process goes on. But as I’ve learned, what I end up with will be better in the end. Plus, the process will be a learning and growing experience.
If you know of anyone who’s selling a relatively new Wrangler, I’m in the market. Plus, I really like the color red.
Here I am with another mostly borrowed blog post. But this one spoke to me as deeply as the one I posted yesterday. Some days, God can feel distant and silent. If we trust in our feelings, we’re very much tempted to give up on God. But if we trust in the promises of God that are all Yes and Amen, we will find that God is present even in the silences and we can see Him near just as our eyes adjust to the darkness around us:
“Martha came to him Jesus and asked, ‘Lord, do you not care?’ (Lk 10:40).
Lord Jesus, when Martha called your empathy and compassion into question, thank you for giving her grace and not taking offense. Though she ‘only’ felt under-appreciated, there are times when we experience crises, stories, and heartaches that seem to contradict your compassion, care, and control.
When ‘darkness hides your lovely face’ we become vulnerable to all kinds of graceless voices:
•The devil’s toxic whisperings … ‘Where IS your Jesus now?’.
•Karma replacing the Gospel, telling us, ‘You’re sick because of hidden, unconfessed sin’.
•The narration of a cynical friend or weary family member, or nosy neighbor. Like Job’s wife telling Job, “Curse God and die” Job 2:9.
•Our own emotionally exhausted, pain-fueled monologue … ‘Maybe there is no Jesus. Maybe I’d be better off dead.’
Lord Jesus, though you don’t always explain yourself or fix things on our timetable, you will never “crush the weakest reed or put out a flickering candle” (Matt.12:20). The Scriptures are very honest about life between your resurrection and return: We will have days when mystery is more real than mercy, heartache is more tangible than hope, and pain is more convincing than providence. But, we will never have a Jesus-absent day.
When we’re angry like Jonah (Jonah 4:9), disillusioned like Job (Job.10:15), fearful like Elijah (1 Kings 19:3), doubt you like John the Baptist (Matt. 11:3), ‘beastly’ like Asaph (Psalm 73:21-22), despairing of life like Paul (2 Cor. 1:8)… you welcome us, and meet us right there… taking no offense, only giving us grace.
Jesus, no one cares like you. No one understandings suffering like you. No one has done more to eradicate all ‘death, mourning, crying and pain’ (Rev.21:4). Thank you. Meet us today, and meet our most weary friends through us. So Very Amen” (Scotty Smith).
I found this prayer penned by Scotty Smith on Facebook and thought it was worth sharing. I think more than anything the Church in America needs to posture itself for the new year in a position of repentance and seeking forgiveness for not living up to biblical standards.
I think on one hand we’ve been too legalistic and self-righteous, looking down on others who sin differently than we do. I also think at times we’ve tried to look too much like the culture we’re called to reach out to and have compromised the message of salvation in the process.
So here’s my prayer for 2024:
“Abba Is Changing Us. Let’s Cooperate.
‘If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness’ (1Jn.1:8-9).
Heavenly Father, for your steadfast love, we bless you. For your patience and kindness, we praise you. For your daily mercies, we trust you. Hallelujah… you’ve already declared us righteous in Christ, and now you’re at work to make us as beautiful as Jesus. Here are some of the areas of heart and life for which we need grace and the Spirit’s work—clear manifestations we’re not as Christ-like as you intend.
•We confess thinking of ourselves too much and marveling at Jesus too little.
•We confess it’s easier for us to rush to judgment than linger in your presence.
•We confess over-believing our fears and under-resting in the Gospel.
•We confess scheduling ourselves into bad attitudes and diminishing health.
•We confess indulging a critical spirit more than we seek your Spirit’s filling.
•We confess being more upset by the news than at peace through your Word.
•We confess making more of other’s sins and weaknesses than our own.
Father, thank you for the full forgiveness we already have in Christ, and the sure hope of being like Jesus one Day. We look to you for strength to repent quicker when you convict us of these and other sins. Humble us. Change us. Heal us. Free us. Thank you… and So Very Amen (Scotty Smith).”
“Christendom has had a series of revolutions and in each one of them Christianity has died. Christianity has died many times and risen again; for it had a God who knew the way out of the grave” (G.K. Chesterton, The Everlasting Man).
It seems that in every generation, people have tried to modify Christianity to make it more culturally acceptable and more palatable to modern ears. The Bible even promises that people won’t want to hear the truth but will follow after those who tell them what they want to believe and want to hear.
But true faith has a way of outliving all those who want to change it. True orthodox Christianity will always exist because it alone has the power to transform people and truly set them free. There is only one gospel with the power to save.
I don’t claim to be smart enough to understand how true faith has managed to stay alive all these centuries, even when it was just about dead in the world and hardly any recognizable form of the gospel could be found.
But I believe that just as God promised Elijah that there was a remnant in Israel who remained faithful, so God again promises that there will always be a true remnant who will hold fast to the teachings of the Bible and of the true Jesus of the gospels. And it won’t be because of any of us who are super faithful and super spiritual, but because it is God’s truth and God will preserve His truth.
My prayer for those who have fallen into false teaching and a pseudo-faith is that they will come to THE truth — not my truth, not their truth, but God’s unchanging and unwavering truth as found in Scripture. I pray they will embrace true faith and find the true joy of salvation.
And I will trust that God is able to keep that which He has created and committed to us, the real and true gospel of Jesus Christ.
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