Cold Snap

It is amazing what a little cold weather can do. I was really enjoying this spring. All the flowers and trees were budding out. The leaves on my Japanese Maple were really looking like this would be the year for it to come into its own. Then the cold came. Like many of you, I covered as much as I could with drop cloths and sheets, night after night. But it was just too cold too long. That which started out beautiful is now wilted.

The experts I read and hear are saying that we should wait and see what the plants will do. The damage is done and trimming or feeding the plants could cause more damage. It is sad but there are limits to what we as humans have control over. When we reach those limits we have to let God do what God can do.

I thought about our spiritual lives and how this cold snap relates to us. We too can be doing so well in our Christian walk and one cold incident can set us back. It can be something outside our control like an illness or tragedy, or something to someone close to us. It can be a lapse in our behavior, giving in to temptation, anger, or some other bad habit of the flesh. Like the cold weather on the plants it can take the glow of Christ off our faces, drag us down, and lead to something worse if we do not take important precautions.

What can we do? We can cover ourselves against the cold just like the plants. Instead of drop cloths and sheet we cover ourselves with prayer and bible reading everyday. If the cold lingers we need to get to church for worship and fellowship. We then need to apply these coverings in the way that God directs for each of us. He has a plan that puts us in the center of God’s purpose and will.

Cold winds blow, on plants and people. That is why Paul said, “Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” (Ephesians 6:11)

Dr. Robin

Do Overs!

In the summer time my neighbor had a basketball goal. I was never very good one on one playing basketball; he was taller and had more reach. But I could shoot good enough to keep up playing “horse.” We took turns shooting and trying to duplicate each other’s shot and when one missed the other got a point and could choose the next shot. Sometimes the game got intense and we resorted to more creative measures to get the other to miss. So, we had to come up with some rules. You could not actually touch the player who was shooting or directly interfere with the shot. If you did the player was allowed a “do over.” He got to do it over again.

It would be nice if everything in life allowed for a “do over” when we make a mistake or someone interferes with us. We could have made better grades in school. We would all have started saving money earlier. We would have no regrets about anything. It could all be fixed with a “do over.”

God has given us the next best thing to a “do over.” He provided a way for us to be forgiven for all our sins, through faith in Jesus, and start our life at a fresh new point as if the past had never happened. It is not a total “do over” in the sense that we cannot go back and fix things and still have to live with the physical consequences of some of our mistakes. But it is as close as we can get from God’s perspective. He forgets our mistakes and His memory is the one that counts in eternity.

Spring represents God’s attitude about life. Every year the earth gets a fresh start. This new start has to build on the growth and decay of previous years. But that can also be a good thing when we allow God to do the building. He is the master designer. If He can build a universe out of nothing He can build a life for you out of what you have so far.

That is what it really means when Paul says, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love the God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28) Is it time for a “do over” in your life?

Dr. Robin