The weather has turned cold and when the wind begins to blow – the icy chill that runs down my spine reminds me that winter is here. Few people are out walking the sidewalks on days like this. Fewer still are sitting at the outdoor tables at the local café.
Yet with temperatures in the 20s, it’s still warm and cozy inside, especially by the window where the warm streams of sunlight are cutting right through the cold and making it seem like a summer day in our office. It’s as if the sun is saying, “No worries – this chill is only temporary, and even in the midst of it I can warm you up if you’ll get under my rays.”
The sun’s word of encouragement is an echo of what the Son of God has said to us, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”
Cold days must come. Hard times are also inevitable. But surer still is the promise of the Son that he will never leave us or forsake us. He will be our strength. He will be our peace. He will even give us joy unspeakable in the midst of our darkest, coldest days.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls. I Peter 1:3-9
So let’s not fret and complain about the cold weather, whether it’s outside our window or in our circumstances of life. The sun will soon bring warmth once again, and the Son will overcome all of life’s storms. Meanwhile let’s enjoy the sun’s and the Son’s warming rays in the midst of winter.
Welcome His Presence Today!
– Brian Morphonios