Snow Day Thoughts

Well, something happened in Fort Smith, Arkansas, that just doesn’t happen very often around here. Snow…and lots of it!

Fort Smith is in what is known as the River Valley. I don’t know all the ins and outs but basically it can be snowing buckets all around us, but normally the big stuff just skips over and around us. But not this time. The latest storm started on Friday and caught the school system completely off guard. MAJOR trouble getting kids home from school. It took me 2 hours to navigate the two schools we needed to go to. The storm even caught most weather guys off guard in terms of snow total – we had 5 inches at my house!

So all of this made for a SLOW Friday evening, Saturday and even Sunday (though we did have worship at our church). I know snow can be a pain to drive on and very inconvenient, but I view snow in Arkansas as a gift from a generous God. Our lives move at a break neck pace but as soon as the first few flakes begin to fall, it seems that everything, and I mean everything, comes to a screeching halt. Nothing else has the impact on the pace of life like snow. As hard as we might try to slow things down on our own, life keeps steaming ahead. But an inch of the white stuff hits the ground and everybody runs for cover, locks themselves away and breathes a sigh of relief. Life just feels different when snow is on the ground.

During this winter storm, I found myself thinking various and random thoughts:

1. The world is utterly quiet when it snows. Have you ever just stepped outside when the snow is falling and listen. It is the sound of pure silence. No insects, birds, cars, or anything else. Just silence. And it is golden. It is peace. In a noisy world, it is a gift from God.
2. I enjoy my kids in new and fresh ways. Snow ball fights, sidewalk shoveling, giant snow men, eating snow (the non-yellow variety), ice sickle fights, snow angels. Little kids discovering, big kids acting like little kids (again), pics and video to make the memories last. ALL of it a gift from God.
3. Warm fires. There’s nothing like the all-day-fire. The one you start in the morning and feed throughout the day. The one that is still burning after the kids are in bed and as you’re reminiscing the day with your spouse. The one that lights a glow in the room as you shut things down and head to bed. The world is a cold place but fire brings warmth and aroma. Once again a gift from God.
4. Life goes on. Snow days are great, but eventually cabin fever sets in and it feels good to get back into the swing of things. It felt GREAT to go to church on Sunday morning. Some churches canceled services but we met as usual, and it was awesome. What a great church family I have and what a magnificent day of worship. I never get tired of worshiping with other believers. Never. It is a gift from God.
5. And as life resumes, the gifts from a gracious God keep flowing. This is a great time of year. The Super Bowl is next week. I’m pulling for the Saints during this one. I lived in Baton Rouge for a while after I first got married. I’ve been to a game in the Super Dome. I once met Sean Payton and he was nice to me. And Drew Brees is a Christian. So for one game they’re my team. Then it’s back to the Cowboys. But then football is over and that’s a bummer BUT just one week later it’s the Daytona 500! Man, I cannot wait for the green flag to drop!

These are just a couple of the things in life I enjoy and I view it all as a gift from God. You may not be a football fan or you may not appreciate NASCAR, but you have something in your life that you love to do or watch or experience, and it is God’s gracious gift to you. Just like the snow. And the silence. And your life.

Just a few of my random thoughts on a snow day…

Jeff