Snow Sunday Online Devotional Guide
I have enjoyed my first snow storm in over 15 years! It has been fun and difficult, and I am going to miss seeing you in the morning. I wanted to provide a devotional guide for the week so we can keep in the habit of keeping in touch. Please add your thoughts to mine so we can share them with each other!
The Great Ice Storm of ‘94
Tomorrow is the 25th anniversary of an ice storm that knocked power out at our house for three weeks! The picture is from one guy’s driveway, but everywhere around our house looked the same: trees and power lines down, ice everywhere, and people couldn’t get out to go anywhere! One official with the power company said years later that this storm changed the way they respond to storms. He said there’s a lesson to learn in every storm. Even when the lesson is as simple as taking advantage of time with your family and how to worship even when you can’t make it to church. Even when the lesson is to slow down and recognize God’s power.
What lessons have you learned because of this storm?
What blessings do you have because of this storm?
What struggles have come because of this storm?
I Think It’s Snow Bright!
I usually take Tobah for a walk late at night. It isn’t unusual to go out at 1 AM for the last walk of the night. Almost every time, he will see a rabbit in the dark and bolt after it. He’s on a leash, so he only makes it about 3 feet. But last night, because the snow was reflecting so much light, it was amazingly bright outside! I could clearly see the rabbit hopping in the snow, looking for grass to eat. It was amazing! From what I understand, all the light from lamps and houses reflect off the falling snow, the clouds, and the snow on the ground and that creates all the ambient light outside. This can cause huge problems in the day time, though, as snow-blindness can be very painful!
I was also reminded about what John wrote in Revelation 22: “There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light.”
In what ways should Christians be like the snow?
What do you think John meant when he said there would be “no more night” in eternity?
Are there times in your life when you are walking in darkness? How would you know?
Footprints in the snow
A couple of times, on late-night walks, I’ve been able to go out in the snow before anyone else has been out there. It’s a really neat experience to walk across an untouched snowy field! Tobah loved bounding through the snow, although I don’t think he was impressed that it was pristine snow. I will point out that, on the way out, I did slip in the mud that lay just below the surface. And Tobah found a few thick blackberry vines that had been covered in the night. So, while it may have been flawless snow, it certainly wasn’t a flawless experience!
Hebrews 12:1-2 – Since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.
How does the Hebrew writer expect us to run our race?
How can people help us on our “race”?
How can Christ help us?
Who are some people you could look to for help?
James D. Mayo 