Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
I love winter, but not so much the winter seasons of life.
About a year ago, not knowing a pandemic was hurdling toward us, my siblings and I fretted over where our mom would live. After hospital stays and time spent in a nursing home, we pondered whether she should remain in the nursing facility, return to her current apartment, or live in an apartment next to our brother. The ultimate decision was up to Mom.
On Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, my siblings and several of our children and grandchildren gathered at the apartment she lived in before the hospitalization. As we prayed for guidance, we packed all her earthly possessions and moved them to my brother’s home, still not knowing her final decision.
Thankfully, Mom moved to the apartment beside my brother just before the pandemic locked down the nursing home. God led us through this difficult winter season just as the door closed on any other possibilities.
In 2 Corinthians, Paul wrote about the thorn in his flesh. In his winter season of life, something difficult plagued him. We aren’t told what the thorn was, only that he had something he referred to as a weakness and hardship. For Paul this must have weighed on him because he wanted nothing more than to serve Jesus. But even in his despair, he thanked God for his trials and claimed delight in his difficult times.
We all go though winter seasons in life. Being with mom through those difficult times of illness and decisions left us all worn and concerned. But Mom pulled through and celebrated her 94th birthday in January, in her new apartment.
The pandemic has been one long winter season for many of us. Prompted by Ann Voscamp’s book, I’ve been writing a list of 1,000 blessings. It’s a bit harder right now, but the list keeps me focused on my journey of gratitude for 2021.
Won’t you join me and seek the blessings, even in the seasons of winter.