What Are You Holding On To?

One of the best parts of a snow storm comes a few days later. As the snow begins to melt a little, it begins to slide down the roof and create this amazing sheet coming over the eaves. This one over the bay window in our dining room is the perfect example. It even has icicles hanging in from it now, giving it a Polar Icecap kind of look!

This phenomenon is even more interesting when you think about the power of snow. No one wants to be caught in an avalanche because the weight and speed of falling snow crushes the human body underneath. Heavy falling snow can barricade doors, stop vehicles in their tracks and cause general shut down of life around us. Pretty powerful that snow, right?

But then we see this beautiful, slowly moving snow on our own rooftops. It hangs on for as long as it can, moving inch by inch instead of mile by mile in a fast-moving snow storm. If weather conditions are right, it may stay like this for days. It melts a little during the day, refreezes at night and clings to the edge as long as it can.

Do you have that kind of staying power?

Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also. Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier. 2 Timothy 2:1-4

Paul doesn’t tell Timothy to dig down deep and find some strength. He wouldn’t have to discover some endurance somewhere that he could rely on every day. And Timothy didn’t need to worry about fighting the trials and temptations of life on his own - Paul reminded him that these things were all gifts from a loving, caring Lord. This is where his staying power would come from all the days of his life.

Snow that should be sliding off the roof by its sheer weight and gravity. A woman who should be flat on her face because of the ever-changing circumstances in her life. They have a lot in common, these two. They both cling so they won’t collapse - the snow to the roof and the woman to her God. Without that endurance, they both come crashing down, broken and shattered. 

But with God as our source of stick-to-it-ness, we endure the hardness and are able to remain untangled from the world. If we’re holding on to the Lord as tightly as we can, He is faithful to reward us for our clingy-ness. And there is no better reward in this life than to know that we have pleased our Heavenly Father.