For the water turns to ice as hard as rock, and the surface of the water freezes. Job 38:30 (New Living Translation)
As we went south for Christmas, we took the weather along with us. The unusual cold and dreariness had us bundling up, but not keeping us from enjoying the much-anticipated trip! It all culminated in an ice storm and snow that left businesses shutdown and immobile vehicles abandoned along the sides of the roads. We extended our stay one more night so that we didn’t get caught driving in the predicted weather event.
We spent the day huddled in front of a crackling fire that was warm and cozy as we listened to the freezing rain pelt against the windows and the wind blow with mighty gusts outside the doors. It might not have been a day to explore the outdoors, but it sure was a day to curl up inside! After the electric went out, we decided to get some packing done using flashlights before we all snuggled in front of that fireplace to keep warm.
The vehicle was almost ready to go when the sun made its appearance in the morning. It was one of the most beautiful sights as I looked out the wall of windows toward the ocean. The colors of the sky were breathtaking, but the beauty didn’t end there. There was a layer of snow covering the sand and everything else that wasn’t covered by the snow was glistening with ice. The marsh grass was standing at attention without its usual sway because the blades were frozen solid!
I got my hubby’s attention to get a picture of what I was seeing. It was amazing! For the first few days I really wanted to see those photographs, but I realized there was a lesson for me during the wait. We can get stuck on a snapshot and forget the rest of the story. We can be frozen in time just as those blades of marsh grass were. Isn’t it just as dangerous for us to be frozen as it would be for all the wildlife if things stayed the same as they were in that picture?
I was reading about how just to survive, alligators were going into a hibernation-like process called brumation during that cold blast we experienced. Silly question…is this something that humans can experience? Are you going through a period of brumation, hibernation, torpor, or even dormancy? In other words, are you frozen due to your surroundings? Are you experiencing a period of sluggishness or inactivity because of a snapshot from one event?
In the picture my hubby took, that area is still frozen even though everything has actually thawed out by now. That’s the danger of looking at our lives from snapshots. We stay frozen…stuck. Some of those alligators were in water that became hard as stone. Our hearts get a little harder and feel like they’re freezing up when we keep focused on a particularly bad event. Our entire body kind of goes into brumation too!
I have something else for you to think about. Are you looking at a snapshot of somebody else’s life that you’re allowing to freeze your actions? Just remember Pastor Furtick’s wisdom when you begin to do that. He said, “The reason we struggle with insecurity is because we compare our behind-the-scenes with everyone else’s highlight reel.”
The good news is the alligators are already back out sunning themselves. We know that because there’s a video instead of only the snapshot. There’s more to the story for you too. Are you going to let the sun (God’s love and mercy) thaw you out if you’re suffering from your own type of brumation?
If God provided a way for the alligators, He’s already provided a way for you to not only survive, but thaw out from that frozen picture to see the story of amazing things that are still to come. It’s a good one too, so don’t miss it!
