Finding the Blessing in the Cold

The last few days have been so nice. Saturday the sun was shining and it was so warm that one could wear a light shirt. Even though it is warm enough that one is tempted to begin preparing a garden, restraint needs to be exercised. It is still January. The weather will most likely turn cold and I am sure there will be more snow. That is not bad. I live in Michigan and there are lots of fruit trees. A wise farmer told my husband and I that we need a certain amount of days with temps below a certain degree for the fruit trees to be healthy.

What one person considers to be a blessing, such as an extremely mild winter, may not be one to others. One might be praying for warm weather while the other is praying for it to be colder and snow, knowing that for his crops to provide a good harvest it is necessary. It all comes down to perspective. Unless we are sometimes willing to look at things through the eyes of those around us, we don’t have a clear picture of what is necessary. The conveniences we like, such as warm weather, might mean failed crops which mean higher prices for the crops. We can complain about the rain, and then complain that the apples or pears, or whatever the crop is are too high.

The saying, “you can’t have your cake and eat it to” might apply. Maybe the very thing we are complaining about is the very thing that will cause a blessing for us later, even if we don’t always recognize that what we complained about was bringing around the blessing. It might be good to step back and count our blessings. Complaining can come way to easy, but it rarely does any good. On the other hand, counting your blessings doesn’t cause any harm. Look for the things you have to be thankful for. Your list might be a lot longer than you expected!