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The Amish Voice 7
It is November; the leaves are mostly
down, and we are busily raking them. The
smell of smoke can often be found in the
air. The crisp outdoors gives us a sense of
foreboding...cold, wintry days are on their
way and will soon be upon us. We feel the
urgency of preparing so we are not caught
unaware.
Winter can be an interesting, fun time,
especially for those who love snow and
winter skating and sledding. A lot of times,
though, winter is seen as a cold time when
things lie dead and dormant, and we
look forward to warmer times, when
life springs new and green and splashes
of color can be found on the landscape.
We can find ourselves in the winter
of the heart, too, at times, where it feels
like we are dying beneath a crushing
weight of cold, bitter snow. Winter in our
lives can be many things. It can be a time
of deep testing, of hurt and pain, or of
grieving over the loss of a loved one. These
times are cold, dark, and lonely, and it of-
ten feels like we have been trudging
through thigh-deep snow in heavy winter
coats. We wonder, “will spring ever
come?”
The thing to remember during these
times is that the winter is a time of prepara-
tion…preparation for springtime when new
growth and life will come, and for summer
when we will become fruitful. It is a time
of surrender...surrender to the death of our
wishes, wants, dreams, and goals, and sur-
rendering them to God, so He can raise
them up brand new. When we have surren-
dered them, and allowed them to die, God
is free to raise them up in His image. Then
it is no longer our plan, but His, and He can
bless it.
There is
a song I love
that says, “When the
dream has been so lonely, and the road has
been too long, and you feel love is just for
the lucky and the strong, just remember in
the winter, far beneath the bitter snow, lies
the seed that with the sun's (Son's) love, in
the spring becomes a rose.” Those words
have been an amazing comfort and encour-
agement to me.
Winter of this sort is not something we
look forward to, but as God's Word tells us,
“Beloved, count it all joy when ye fall into
divers temptations, knowing this, that the
trying of your faith worketh patience.” We
can count it all joy when we fall into differ-
ent trials and temptations. Spring will come
eventually, as it always does, even after a
long, hard winter, and then we will burst
forth with new life, and songs. And in the
summer, we will bring forth much fruit.
So when you are going through the
hard times, surrender to the process. Allow
God to do His work in you. Remember,
the sun will shine again, the snow will
melt, the birds will sing, and the flowers
will bloom. Then you can help someone
else going through the process, and give
them encouragement and hope.
Song of Solomon 2:10-13 says: “My
beloved spake, and said unto me, Rise up,
my love, my fair one, and come away. For,
lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and
gone; The flowers appear on the earth; the
time of the singing of birds is come, and
the voice of the turtledove is heard in our
land; The fig tree putteth forth her green
figs, and the vines with the tender grape
give a good smell. Arise, my love, my fair
one, and come away.” This is God's infi-
nite love showing. He says, “it's all over,
come with me into the warm sunshine.”
Seasons and Times
—Lynn Miller
Jesus is not just a picture on the wall we
point to
. He is not just another person we
read about
in God’s Word and say: yea, we believe all
those things about Him. No! He is a real person—the Living Savior of the world. And guess what! He wants to live in your heart. You
know. Just like He lived in the Tabernacle during the time Israel made their way through the wilderness to the Promised Land—just like He
lived in Holy of Holies in Solomon’s Temple—so He wants to live in you. The everlasting Word of God says:
“To whom God would make known
what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among
the Gentiles
; which is
Christ in you
, the hope of glory:”—Colossians 1:27
“Know ye not that ye are the
temple
of God, and
that
the Spirit of God
dwelleth in
you
?” —1 Corinthians 3:16
“But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God
dwell in you
.
Now if any man
have not
the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His.” —Romans 8:9
“But as many as
received Him
, to them gave He power [the right] to become the sons of
God…”—John 1:12
“He that
hath
the Son
hath
life;
and
he that
hath not
the Son of God
hath not
life.” —1
John 5:12
Do you have Jesus?
—Joe Keim
What? know ye not that your body is
the temple of t he Holy Ghost
which
is
in you, which ye have of God, and
ye are not your own?
For ye are bought with a price: there-
fore glorify God in your body, and in
your spirit, which are God's.
—1 Corinthians 6:19-20