It isn’t hard to conjure up images of being “snowed.”
All we have to do is look out the window during a snow storm. Our streets are empty, our activities are cancelled, our businesses are closed, our government is shut down, and we are all in a dormant state. Our outside world shows almost no signs of visible life, and the precipation keeps falling.
How different this is from the norm. We’re not used to being incapacitated — especially when it comes to the operations of daily living. We’re sorry for those who are in great duress due to power outages, lack of heat, scarcity of food, or suffering from illness of any kind. The sense of being powerless is dominant.
We’re not used to being out of control. Our expectations for living are that we have an answer for everything.
Somehow, this winter storm makes us aware that we do not always have answers to such experiences. How humbling it becomes. As creatures in God’s world, we are left to the mercy of the elements and a whole lot of God’s grace. Let’s keep our faith that we will make it through.
On the other side is the reality that our falling snow is of marvelous beauty. I trust you have taken a moment to look at the calmness, brightness and peace of the falling snow. It is actually therapeutic.
When was the last time you just paused to observe something? Soak it all in, savor the respite, and sense that we are the creatures in this world and not the Creator. Think of the reality that in its quiet coming each snowflake is different and unique. No wonder that God can create each of us as different from the other What a blessing and what a gift.
As the snow covers the earth with a blanket of whiteness, maybe there is rich meaning to the reality that our purpose is to cover the world with a blanket of love, care and acceptance that is a kin to the beauty of our snowcovered earth. Maybe God is speaking to us in this quiet way. In reality it is almost beyond our comprehension.
Maybe “being snowed” is not such a bad thing after all.
Dr. David P. Nelson, St. John’s Lutheran Church