Submitted by Pastor Donna Clark Fuller, Rock Port and Watson United Methodist Churches

“It was you who set all the boundaries of the earth; you made both summer and winter.” Psalm 74:17

We are deep in the middle of winter. We have had snow, ice, temperatures well below freezing, and severe wind chill factors. It is easy to be anxious for spring to come and with it warmer weather. But God gave us both summer and winter and each season has its blessings. The other day I woke up to ice on the trees, the sun shining and the whole landscape sparkling like diamonds. Since the roads were clear, it was easy to appreciate the beauty of the moment. It isn’t always so easy when we have to deal with the difficulties winter can present for our everyday activities.

But sometimes we need a change in our routine. A snow day once in a while can be a welcome day of rest. And sometimes we need to endure the difficulties to be able to experience the blessings that are also present in each season. Sometimes we need to just stop and look for those blessings and stop living in what we wish for.

Relationships with other people can have their difficulties, too. Marriages, friendships, relationships with people at work or at church can have conflict at times. Anyone who is raising children can tell you that they can be a lot of trouble. But those relationships can be blessings as well. When we keep in mind the blessings that are possible, we make the effort to create good relationships. It might mean seeing the beauty in the other person and not just seeing whatever fault we can find.

A relationship with God is also much more when we see the blessings God gives us and not just what we want God to do for us. If our prayer life is only a list of what we need God to do for us, we can miss out on the beauty that God is giving us every day. God has created a pretty big earth, with much beauty in every season. Let us spend this winter seeing the beauty in this winter that God has given us.