Brrrr!

All I can say is “Brrr!” Today we took the dog to the vet for her annual rabies shot/checkup. The mini van did not get very warm during the ten minute drive. It was only 6°F!

At times like this I am reminded of the first time I ever heard Keith McLeod, a Canadian evangelist, back in 1976. He was speaking from Genesis 3, about the Fall of Adam and Eve. I don’t remember much about the main part of the sermon, but what stands out to me is what he said concerning weather. He said that the Garden of Eden was most likely 75° or warmer, since Adam and Eve were naked, yet comfortable. Since they fell, the weather extremes we experience remind us of their sin. When we are too cold in winter, we should remember the Fall. When it is scorching in summer, we should remember the Fall. (Side note: The next time I heard Bro. McLeod, it was a record breaking -23°F! He joked that it felt warm, as it was -68°F when he left Canada.)

So, this winter as we shiver our way through the cold, let us remember not only the Fall, but the redemption provided for us when Christ Jesus died on the cross of Calvary. Adam and Eve, as far as we know, never knew redemption and forgiveness from God for their sin. That does not matter. The main question is, am I forgiven? Are you?

Peace like a river.

I have always enjoyed singing the hymn “It is well with my soul”. The meaning of the first verse never really came clear until I moved to my current home. The lines “When peace like a river attendeth my way ...” make a beautiful picture, but I grew up in a desert, far from any flowing river. I now live in a house overlooking the Mississippi River. Every day I see it flowing by. Some days in particular the river is so calm, it looks like glass. Peaceful, soothing.

So, what is the message of the hymn? Mr. Spafford wrote the song while on a ship crossing the Atlantic Ocean. Earlier, he had lost his daughters in a shipwreck. He found peace with God in his grief. There really is not a better picture of peace than a calm river. When I sit by the river on a calm day, I am reminded of the peace of God. “It is well with my soul.” Is it well with yours?