MAKE THE BEST OF A CHILLY SITUATION

This will come as no surprise to you, but it’s been really cold in the upper Midwest this past week. Everybody is talking about it, and most people are probably getting tired of hearing about it. Nevertheless, I’m going to blog about it because there are some really cool things that can be seen and done due to the extreme cold.

The first one that caught my eye was a picture that captured spectacular Sun Dogs. A friend took it on the way home after his morning workout. Sun dogs occur when tiny moisture particulates in the air freeze and reflect the sun's rays causing a spectrum of colors. The air is frozen! Take a few breaths and let that sink in.

Photo Credit: Chris Richardson   

The next few items are ways that show how people can be creative by finding ways to enjoy the extreme cold.

To begin with, there is a couple of brothers who build detailed snow sculptures every year. First of all, they need snow, and second, they need it to be cold, so the snow doesn't melt. No problem with it melting when it's below zero.

 2018/19 Bartz Snow Sculptures

The next one is a fun project to do with kids. Take balloons, fill them with water and food coloring, then let them freeze. Once frozen, cut away the balloon. Some call them dinosaur eggs...makes sense to me. Who would have thought water balloons would be fun all year round.

The final one I'll share shows that it has been so cold, your pants will freeze. A guy in our neighborhood started this project many years ago. This year, I wanted to give it a try. I ran a couple pairs of jeans through the wash to get them thoroughly wet, then brought them outside.With the air temperature at -25 degrees, it only took three minutes for the pants to freeze. I shaped them as fast as possible, then stuck them in the snow. 

Photo credit: My work pants

I'd be interested to see how you make the most of a chilly situation outdoors.

James 1:2-4 Consider it pure joy my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 

DON'T GET FOOLED AGAIN

My work van has a remote starter, which is pretty awesome this time of year. Being able to stand in the warmth of my house on a blustery winter morning, push a button that starts the vehicle, and then climb into a warm van 10 minutes later is pretty cool. When the vehicle starts the horn honks, the engine fires up, starts rumbling, and the parking lights stay on. The process is anything but subtle.

The past few mornings have gone like this - I start my van and continue getting ready for the day. After brushing my teeth, I grab my lunch box and head out the door. The van is parked outside in front of the garage door. Opening the garage door is a squeaky operation when it’s frigidly cold. Walking around the front of the rumbling vehicle, each footstep crunches on the frozen snow. One particular morning as I stepped toward the driver’s door, a scared rabbit darted out from under the hedges…which, in turn, startled me. I laughed it off, thinking to myself how weird it was that the rabbit didn’t scare away from the other commotion happening around it.

The same thing happened the next morning, and I was startled yet again. Day three, you ask? Yes, and both the rabbit and I jumped…again. Eventually, the rabbit wised up and found a different bush to sleep under - I’m glad it did because I’m not sure how much more my nerves could handle.

Romans 7:14-17 So the trouble is not with the law, for it is spiritual and good. The trouble is with me, for I am all too human, a slave to sin. I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate. But if I know what I am doing is wrong, this shows that I agree that the law is good. So I am not the one doing wrong, it is sin living in me that does it.

TAKE IT ALL IN

Hello winter! You know, the time of the year when it’s dark when you leave the house for work in the morning and dark when you get home too. Yesterday morning I drove an hour and a half southeast to a job site that I’ve been to many times. The area is very scenic and because I’m heading southeast in the morning, it also means I’m driving directly into the sunrise.

The first 30 minutes of the drive was busy as I weaved my way through traffic in the dark. Soon I was out of the city limits and ready for a casual drive for the next hour. While heading down the highway I noticed the horizon was starting to get light as sunrise was nearing. A heavy line of clouds was drifting east toward the horizon and it appeared as though it was going to block out the sun. Good news for me because I don’t care to spend the next hour driving directly into the low hanging winter sun. A short time later, the line of clouds was just about to the horizon and the sun was just starting to pierce the earth’s crest. I love sunrises, and this one was quickly turning into a beauty right before my eyes!

Realizing this was going to keep my attention for a while, I figured it would be safer to pull off the highway and enjoy it. As the sky turned a glowing powder blue, the clouds started to change from gray to orange. Soon the sky was a brilliant amber and the clouds were turning pink. The horizon skyline narrowed as the clouds drifted closer the edge. The clouds took on different shades of purple and were cascading down to a burning pink line at the horizon.

This would look a lot better at the Omni Theater

I whipped out my phone and began taking pictures. Looking at the sunrise, then at the pictures on my phone, then back up to the massive sky, I realized it was impossible to capture what my eyes were seeing so I decided to put the phone back in my pocket and just take it in. Ten minutes later it was all over, and I was back on the road. Sometimes, we need to put everything aside and just take in the moment.

Zephaniah 3:17 The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.

HOLLOW INSIDE, FIND FULLNESS

As the sun began to shine upon the neighborhood it became very apparent how much snow fell the night before. There was a thick, white blanket hanging on everything in sight. Power lines were sagging lower than normal, and when the slightest breeze whispered by, they bounced and appeared stretched to their limit. The branches of evergreen trees hung low from the weight, causing the lower branches to drape on the ground. The bare oak and maple trees didn’t seem to be bothered by the extra weight, but the moisture from the snow was dripping off the limbs and running down the trunk.

While clearing the steps and sidewalk of the fresh snow, it felt heavy and full of moisture. Water ran off the scoop of the shovel every time it was lifted off the ground. With clear skies overhead, the wind started to build while the power lines swayed back and forth, releasing snow until they were finally clear. As the winds continued, the trees didn’t fare as well - several evergreens had branches break off within a foot of the trunk, and the oaks and maples began to lose many smaller branches.

The scenery was very different later that day, most of the snow had melted, but the damage left behind was very apparent. There was a large tree that had the main trunk break off just above the ground. The heavy snow and wind had taken its toll on the tree. What really stood out was that the trunk was completely hollow on the inside, so hollow that I was amazed it was able to stand, regardless of the weight of the snow. A tree that appeared healthy on the outside was, in fact, empty on the inside.

Colossians 2:8-10 (NIV) See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the element spiritual forces of this world rather than Christ. For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and in Christ you have been brought to fullness…

BUSY AS A BEAVER

Busy as a beaver, or so the saying goes, right? Christmas can be a very busy time of year, traveling to see family, re-connecting with friends, buying gifts, sending cards, baking, decorating the tree, going to church…the list goes on and on.

There is a very distinct difference between being busy and busy-ness. The action of busy-ness can be defined as things we feel we “need” to get done, “should” get done, or ”want” to get done, but don’t necessarily benefit us or those close to us. Busy-ness can take away from time spent with those that mean a lot to us, or like spending time reflecting on the birth story of Jesus.

Being busy as a beaver has purpose…meaningful purpose.

As Mr. or Mrs. Beaver waddle through the small brush in their life, the focus is to find suitable branches they can use to build a safe and secure lodge.

The large trees they encounter can be a source of food and for building dams and flood areas to increase their habitat.

As busy as beavers are, they don’t do it for show, they do it in private.  They’re also very hard to get pictures of, though I was able to get this one very lame picture of Mr. or Mrs. Beaver.

The beaver is that round blob on the left

They even eluded my trail camera, either by moving so fast the camera couldn’t catch them, or by moving so slow they didn’t activate it.

Notice the downed log

        The beaver eluded the camera but you can see a lot of that log missing

I do admire their purpose driven life, but also really wonder what their dentist bill looks like.

Proverbs 19:21 Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.

KEEP DIGGING

My wife and I were enjoying a leisurely boat ride on a nearby river one sunny summer afternoon. Of course, I told my wife it would be leisurely, but we both know I’m always on the hunt for something.

The sun was high in the sky causing every ripple in the water to sparkle like thousands of stars. We were heading north upstream when we noticed two bald eagles overhead. The eagles were soaring back and forth from one bank of the river to the other. Every so often a gust of wind would lift the eagles higher towards the sun and then they would swoop back down continuing to the hunt for an afternoon meal.

Eventually, we motored past the eagles to a narrower part of the river. This was a place that seemed more conducive for the prey I was after. As we continued upstream, the perfect location appeared like an oasis in the desert. It was a bank of the river that was a mixture of sand and rocks that were undisturbed by humans. I told my wife we were going to beach the boat on the bank so I could walk around and stretch my legs. The boat softly pierced its way through the sand and finally came to rest on the bank. I jumped out of the boat, grabbed the anchor rope and tethered it to a large downed tree. My wife put her feet up on the edge of the boat and started to soak up the sun.

Walking the bank with the sun shining over my shoulder, I scanned the sand and rocks looking for any sign of something sparkling back at me. After several minutes a sparkle appeared, and it was exactly what I was looking for…a deep red, raisin sized agate. It was small, but it was precisely what I was on the hunt for this day. The rest of my stroll was uneventful, so I wandered back to my wife and the boat. As I approached the boat, something caught my eye; it wasn’t a sparkle, but more of a glow. The object was different than any other stones around it. I bent over to pick up the nickel sized object, but it didn’t budge. I started brushing the sand away from around it and kept brushing the sand away until eventually the object was unearthed. It was the shape of a rounded pyramid and the size of a softball…it was a chalcedony agate! To this day, it has been my most captivating find, mostly because I had to keep digging to see what lay underneath.

A friend reminded me lately that a blog about agates was in order.

James 1:12 Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trail. for when he stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.

BEING HUMBLE HAS IT REWARDS

Have you had 15 seconds of fame?  Are you still waiting for it to happen? Maybe you don’t want the attention and feel more comfortable standing in the shadows. Is it possible to enjoy both?

I think everybody will have a moment of “fame” at some point in their life. It may be showing off talents for many to see or being the center of attention when a presentation flops, however fame isn’t always a positive experience.

Trees seem to have a good balance between fame and staying the shadows. In the springtime, they sprout new buds and produce some spectacular flowers that attract the attention of many creatures. During the summer, their lush green foliage can be easily overlooked because it’s everywhere. In the fall, their magnificent color change draws people outdoors to catch a picture of the beautiful scenery. During the winter months when the nights are long and their branches are bare, trees are more subtle. Even during times of subtleness, trees have a way of supporting other things in having their moment.

One of my favorite sights is the horizon just before sunrise. As the sky starts to turn from black to a deep blue, the plain, dark silhouette of trees helps accentuate the color scheme. Slowly, the deep blue sky lightens, and when the clouds cooperate, the sky glows with a combination of yellow and orange. Once again, the dark silhouette of trees helps to accentuate the beautiful canvas…sometimes being in the shadows helps others to shine.

Matthew 23:12 Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, whoever humbles himself will be exalted.