We moved to Rapid from the Seattle area almost four years ago. (Next Sunday marks four years at SCBC). While in Washington, we often heard the saying “If you don’t like the weather, wait a few minutes . . . it will change.”
What’s funny is that people say the very same thing here. And this week sure proved it! Monday morning we woke up to almost a foot of snow, school was cancelled  and it snowed most of the morning. It was also COLD. But today is a different story! It is almost 80° and we have plenty of sunshine. In fact, at 7:30 this morning we already had hit 60, which told me it was going to be a nice warm day.

As I’ve thought about the past week . . . month . . . year . . . and four years in Rapid, I’ve thought about that saying. And the truth is, it sorta sums up life on this earth. We go through all sorts of seasons. But God says “hold on, it’s only temporary” . . .
Some weather stays a little longer than we had hoped – as of now, there’s some snow STILL on the ground (not much, but some) – and sometimes those dark winter days are really dark and cold. But God hasn’t changed with the weather. He is seated on His throne loving us as always. In fact, many passages teach us that God controls the weather in a day (Psalms, Jeremiah, Job, etc) and God also controls the “weather” in our lives (James 1, 1 and 2 Corinthians).

I am so thankful that, because He loves me, I can trust what comes my way. The sunshine of happy times, the dark clouds of sadness, the cold winds of despair . . . nothing happens in my life beyond my Father’s love. Nothing.
Paul said “ I have experienced times of need and times of abundance. In any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of contentment, whether I go satisfied or hungry, have plenty or nothing.” He could live in that way of thinking because he had come to be convinced  “that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor heavenly rulers, nor things that are present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
I believe it was my Mama Dawson who used to quote the little jingle:
Whether the weather be fine, or whether the weather be not;
Whether the weather be cold, or whether the weather be hot,
We’ll weather the weather whatever the weather,
Whether we like it or not!
 
BUT . . . How do we live that way? We live like that because we are convinced He loves us!