It seems that the older I get, the less I like winter. I used to think the snow was pretty; but now I just see it as drab and cold and wet. Can’t we just bypass winter and jump into spring?

Things really came to a head this year, though. Although I’ve always loved the colours of fall, each time I saw a red or a yellow tree this season, my mind completely circumvented all thoughts of beauty and jumped immediately into the thought that the changing leaves meant winter was on its way. Suddenly those once-beautiful trees seemed hideous…

That all changed, however, when my wife and I made a quick trip to the northern part of western Canada. Imagine my frustration and disappointment when the first snows of the season arrived on the morning of the same day we arrived. The mercury dipped down to -15 C, and stubbornly refused to rise for the entire time we were there. It snowed so hard on our last day that our afternoon flight home became a red-eye because of the storm.

I, for one, was plenty happy to get back home. I won’t say it is warm at home. We do, after all, still live in Canada, and it was, after all, November. But at least we didn’t have any snow! Instead, where it was visible through the layer of fallen leaves, we actually still had green grass!

Wait! Was I really happy to see the piles of leaves?

Actually, I was. The fallen leaves on the green grass meant that the colds of winter hadn’t yet arrived. We still had some reprieve from the snow and sub-zero temperatures. Suddenly I began to see the beauty in the fall once again!

I have often written about the changes in seasons and how this corresponds to the changes in life’s circumstances. Just like the fall season means that winter is on the way, there are times when we know something bad is on the way. Sometimes there are outward signs: A terminal illness or degenerative disease is diagnosed; your company announces there will be lay-offs; your kids begin to show signs of rebellion, etc. And sometimes we just feel it in our bones that something bad is on the way. And just like I failed to see the beauty in the fall colours this fall because I was so concerned about the upcoming winter that they foretold, we get so caught up in the worry of what may be upcoming that we fail to see God’s blessings around us.

My frustration that winter was on the way, however, didn’t change the beauty of fall one bit. My dislike of winter simply blinded me to the beauty all around me. In the same way, our anticipation of troubled times blinds us to the blessings God gives us on a daily basis. We can’t see the beauty around us because we are focused on what is to come.

So what is the solution?

Straight from the mouth of Jesus Himself: “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” (Matthew 6:34 NIV).

In other words, enjoy the beauties of today, ever knowing that God will carry you through the winter storms of tomorrow.

Yes, this is easier said than done. But the Bible gives us a recipe for how to focus on today: “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” (Phil. 4:8 NIV).

We are urged to think about the good, not about the bad, for we can trust God with our future! Didn’t God tell us, “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” (Isaiah 43:18-19 NIV).

Prayer: Lord, don’t let us get so caught up in the worry that we are blinded to Your blessings of today. Help us to live for today. Help us to watch where You are at work around us, ever knowing and believing that no matter what, You will make a way! Amen.


Inspired by Rob Chaffart
Director, Answers2Prayer Ministries