“God is our refuge and strength, an ever present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though the waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.” (Psalm 46:1-3 NIV)

When my brother built our greenhouse, he was wise enough to put in a main support that ran along the ceiling from front to back. And this year, with record snow falls, we really needed it. For even though we kept the snow and ice off it, as much as possible, the weight accumulated as particles seemed to stick more and more.

One day, as I was walking by, coming from doing morning corral chores, something about the structure caught my eye. I stood and looked at it for several moments before I realized that the front wall of the building looked like it had slightly buckled outward. Alarmed by my findings, I quickly checked the back wall and discovered the same issue. Going back to the front I climbed over several feet of snow to the windows and was shocked to see that the main support in the ceiling had literally flown apart under the snow’s weight above it.

Fortunately, the greenhouse stayed up, and with some help, and the fact that the snow was getting soft, I was able to pull the rest of the weight from its’ domed roof.

With the weight removed, the front and back walls, gradually straightened themselves back up. And with Spring now here, we were able to once again re-enforce the roof. This time with a much stronger beam, as well as two support beams running from the floor to the ceiling.

This incident reminded me of the times we all go through in life, when one of our main support beams blows apart. One of those parts of our life that we really depend upon. That we wonder how we would ever stand and keep going day by day if we were to lose them. Our health, a spouse, our position, a child, our finances. And the list goes on. And when this happens part of us can buckle, emotionally, physically, mentally and yes, even spiritually.

Yet there is One support beam, whom we can always count on to keep us standing and even moving forward be it, only one step at a time. And that is God. For He is our refuge and strength an ever present help in trouble if we will only let Him be. His Holy Spirit will bring us comfort and grant us peace and rest amidst the turmoil, darkness, pain and sense of bewilderment that such times thrust upon us with all their agony. And in His own time, we can be assured that He will repair our hearts and minds and souls, that we might once again stand firm and fully restored.

Prayer: Father God, we thank You that we can count on You. Sometimes when things go terribly wrong, when things blow apart, we wonder if You care. We wonder if You are even there. For amidst such times we often cannot sense Your presence. And yet, if by faith, we choose to trust and believe that You are with us, as You have promised to always be, our load becomes lighter and our hearts are strengthened. And we are able to continue to move through the darkness until the light of Your love and presence becomes apparent once again. For this we give You, honour and glory and praise. In Christ’s name. Amen.

Lynne Phipps