We’re just halfway into winter. Some are already anxious for it to be spring. Yet God has determined the seasons, including winter, to fulfill His plan for our world. After the Great Flood, God told Noah that summer and winter would not cease until the world was made new. Psalm 74:17 says that God is the One Who made summer and winter.
We are to rejoice in each time we are given, if for no other reason than that God has appointed them! There are other values to winter as well.
Winter permits us to ponder the seasons of life. Each season of life is valuable and to be appreciated. In youth, we are granted energy and speed that allows us to work quickly and with relative ease–that is the springtime of life. In early adulthood, we pursue our vocations and begin our families– that is the early summer. The later summer and autumn is the time of maturing and reaping the fruit of our lives. Later autumn helps us put up for winter and to prepare for its icy blasts, as we teach succeeding generations the Gospel and wisdom for living. Then the full weight of our lives comes to a slowing and ultimately the stopping of our physical lives–that is the fullness of winter.
Winter affords time to heal, to repair, and to regroup. With heavy snow and bitterly cold winds, things just do not move so much, and there are fewer opportunities for harm as they tend to withdraw into the ground, into their shelters, and into their homes. That withdrawn time allows bodies and minds to rest, and to ready ourselves for the busy seasons ahead.
Winter is the time to spend in the Word of God, in prayer, and in the closer fellowship that a relaxed schedule affords. Winter allows us to “catch up” and prepare for what is yet ahead in our lives. In Biblical times, kings used wintertime to see that all was ready for the warmer times ahead–whether for building, or for making war. We engage in spiritual warfare (Ephesians 6:10-18), and winter is a good time for us to spend in spiritual disciplines that prepare us to work for Christ.
What are you engaged in this particular winter season? Will the winter bring you to the point of considering your spiritual life, and your preparation for Eternity? Take time now to prepare–for spring and renewed life, and also to be ready for Heaven and eternal life. Are you trusting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour? If you were to come to your winter of physical life, would you be ready to meet the Lord? Acknowledge your sin and need for Christ’s sacrifice for you, believe in Jesus Christ with all your heart, mind, and strength; and confess Him as Saviour and Lord–without delay!
Craig Alan Myers – CBC Executive Board member
