The Winter, She Cometh

“You set the boundaries of the earth, and you made both summer and winter.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭74:17‬ ‭

Brrrr.

The nights are getting colder. The winds blow from the north. Frost is a daily event.

The Winter, she cometh.

I don’t like scraping ice from my windshield. I don’t like having to start my vehicle and let it warm up before I drive to work. I don’t like all the layers and pounds of clothing required to stay warm on supervision duty. I don’t like leaving for work in the dark and getting home in the dark.

It makes me feel like a mole.

But –

I do like the way delicate snowflakes look when I capture them fresh on my mittens. I do like the way the hoarfrost shimmers like diamonds. I do like the way even the weeds get dressed in fancy finery and reflect the sunsets like icy fire.

And I do like the fact that anacondas and tarantulas can’t live here because of our cold climate.

The thing is, without winter, I wouldn’t love every moment outdoors in spring and summer and fall. I wouldn’t appreciate the feel of sun on skin. I wouldn’t celebrate the miraculous rebirth of plants frozen solid for six months springing up and doing their thing with such persistence.

We need both.

We need times of solid growth.

We need times of rest. Dormancy. Restoration.

The whole earth has been set up with boundaries. Limits. Set times for starts and stops.

Balance.

A God of balance who set life up to have a natural ebb and flow?

This is a God who invented the Sabbath – a day off every week for rest and restoration. Who invented a time for plants and soil to rest from active duty.

A God who loves and values the changing seasons and what each brings to our lives.

Balance.

The winter, she cometh.

And that’s okay!

What can you do to ensure a better balance in your life? To honour your need for rest and rejuvenation?

Take steps to enjoy a better balance with me?

Father, Your every creation tells the story of balance – the seasons. Day and night. One day of seven set aside for rest. Help us to seek and sustain a healthy balance in our own lives as we celebrate the beautiful ways Your creation points us to wondrous equilibrium. Amen.