Hi Friends! It’s been a few days and all kinds of God things are happening here. I will tell you about them soon. I know… the suspense must be killing you! 🙂
The snow is falling outside my window. It’s a heavy snow covering everything bright white and beautiful. I love days like this. I have the blinds rolled up and am watching it cover the wintery ground. The snow has a way of making everything look peaceful. Even the sound of the crush under a warm boot sounds like a symphony. The lovely white has power to cover everything.
When we first moved into our house, twelve years ago, the yard was nothing but a mud pit. We built our house and because construction didn’t wrap up until November, landscaping wasn’t an option. I prayed all winter for the snow to fall because the house looked so beautiful when the gorgeous, gleaming powder fell. But when it melted… yuck!
Now every time it snows, I think about that first winter in this house and the way I prayed for God to let beauty fall from the sky and cover the shame of the mud hole. If only we could all see our hearts with that same view…
I don’t want to call you out, so I’ll do it to myself. I’m a sinner! every single day I think things I shouldn’t, say things I shouldn’t, and even act on things I shouldn’t. And I’m someone who loves Jesus with my whole heart.
But I’m still human.
I still make mistakes.
I am a work in progress.
As God has been digging deeper and deeper into the muddy corners of my heart, I find myself praying more and more for Him to cover it with the beautiful blood of His forgiveness. You see, the harder we follow after Christ, the more He will show us what needs to be fixed. Not in a guilty or condemning way. There is no condemnation in Christ. (See Romans 8:1-3) It’s a quiet, gentle reprove that speaks softly to the soul and directs us into paths of righteousness. (See Psalm 23:3) Sometimes, it hurts and we don’t want to go down the path He’s called us to walk. However, when we can bow in humility, the snow falls. It’s clean and glorious. It changes lives and ushers in hope.
2014 was a rough year for me, but I’m seeing so much favor, promise, and blessing in 2015. He is the God who sees our hearts, and nudges us to ask Him to clean them. He is the God who wants us to serve Him. He wants to pour blessings. He wants to comfort us in the moments when we feel we cannot make it any further. And He is the God who allows the snow to fall and make everything beautiful.
May everything in your life be beautiful today, friends, and may you desire a clean heart before the Almighty.
Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
-Psalm 51:10
Love,
Jennifer
