Precipitation. :)

Having lived in the Phoenix are for over 40 years, I never used to think about precipitation very much...it was a rarity! Because as a family we have always loved seasons and snow, in particular, we would sometimes head to the mountains for a good winter snowstorm.
Now that I live year round in those very same mountains, I have developed a much greater appreciation of seasonal changes, and especially the lessons I learn about God and about life when it precipitates!
Because temperatures can fluctuate here during a winter storm, it is not unusual for us to have a variety of forms of precipitation in just a few hours. Not long ago, we had a day with sunshine, then rain, then hail, then more sun, then snow! Yesterday was sunny, today it snowed lightly all day. We have had numerous periods of snowshine today, too ( my FAVORITE! Snowing while the sun is shining!).
As June approaches, even our restaurant marquis remind us to pray for rain! June is our driest month, and hence, forest fire season. Rain is minimal and a desperate need. In July and August we have rain. Glorious, garden feeding, earth refreshing, tree protecting, wonderful smelling rain!
Having grown a vegetable garden and flower garden here in the mountains, I have realized anew the importance of life-giving rain.
So you see, precipitation is important and varied!
Here are just a few of the lessons I have learned from precipitation...I am sure there are many more to come in the future!

1) God is infinitely and wonderfully creative! His amazing attention to detail and beauty leaves me awestruck.
2) Sometimes beauty beyond description comes in the silence. Like a blanket of collaborative peace, the tiny individual snowflakes cling together to cover all things. If you do not watch for them, you can miss their quiet arrival.
3) Sometimes the prescription for healing, refreshment, and renewal brings with it inconvenience. It is not always convenient to have rain, but it is a blessing and balm to our parched earth, and allows for beauty to delight us in spring and summer. Many of the lessons God has worked in my heart were very, very inconvenient. But He uses them still to soften my rough edges and make my life more beautiful.
4) Sometimes change is painful. When you are busy with some activity or important chore and the gentle snowflakes become hail or sleet, it HURTS! Change has often caused me pain in life. But I am positive that if nothing changed in my life, I would tire of it quickly and whine about the boredom and monotony. Perhaps I just like to whine.
5) I LOVE THE SEASONS! I am in the autumn of my years, but I have no doubt that just as God has faithfully brought about the changing seasons since time began, He will continue to be faithful and noticeably present during this season of my life and through the winter of my years. I love spending every day seeing and experiencing His Creative Presence.
Next time you have precipitation where you are, enjoy it, and look for the life lessons!
Have a great weekend!
Annie

Welcoming in a New Year...

Another year has come and gone, and we are well into a brand new one. I have not been overly excited about ushering in 2013. The world around us is more and more becoming a scary place. The country we love is divided...there are great chasms between the ideologies, values, priorities, and opinions of our citizens. Sin is blatant, rampant, and barbaric. Satan is no longer subtle -- he has no reason to be. He is having a field day. Our leaders take away our rights on a daily basis, speak lies and deception, and corruption is everywhere, especially in high places. It can be discouraging. It can be downright depressing.
But more significant than the ugliness in today's world is the truth that God is in control. He is not wringing His Holy, nail-scarred Hands, nor pacing the Halls of Heaven trying to think of a solution. No, He is never-changing, omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent. He is the Great I AM. Every bit of what is happening in our world today is part of His Divine Plan, spelled out in His Word, the Bible. So how should we respond to the decaying world around us? What are we to do?
We are to trust Him, serve Him, and live in such a way that others wish to know what motivates and inspires us. Our God is busy at work in the classroom of my heart! I have much to learn this year. How about you? Come, let's sit at the Master's feet, as he directs our paths!