When Winter Gets Long

I just spent 4 days working on a retreat in the middle of the state. I didn't realize until I started driving that it seems our small little corner of the state has a LOT more snow than everywhere else. The further I drove the more it looked like spring. While I was there, I quickly forgot about the snow at home. The retreat itself was a wonderful spiritual refresher, but like any other great event, it had to come to an end (and it was good it did because I was really missing the 5 people I share a house with!!). The closer and closer I got to home the more and more the snow was piled up and I felt like I was driving from spring back into winter. For those on the retreat, myself included, it probably feels like that with their spiritual lives as well. We get an opportunity to shut out the rest of the world and focus only on Jesus. To be surrounded by other people who love Him too and therefore love us. We let Him break through the cold in our hearts with the warmth of His grace. And we promise ourselves we won't let the cold back in.
But then, we have to go back to winter. We have to go home. Back to the same struggles, temptations and heartbreaks. We have changed, but our world has not. And even more difficult, we are asked not just to survive the cold but bring warmth to others.
Yesterday, I got outside with three of my four tiny humans, and my four year old just had to get to the top of this "mountain". My 1 1/2 year old thought it was also a good idea. Off they went, and as I watched them going, I couldn't help but stop to take in the beauty of it all. There was nothing but pure white snow in every direction. They looked so alone and tiny out there, but neither one seemed to notice as they trudged on, determined to get to the top.
We could all take a lesson from them, I decided. They don't see how small they are or how big the snow is. They see where they want to go and they know the only way to get there is to take steps in that direction.
I came home from the retreat with the goal of being a more patient, sacrificial mom, making more time to pray and determined to find more joy in my sacrifice. I succeeded at this in the morning....for four hours. And then I was right back to my old self. Watching my boys reminded me that the change from winter to spring is a slow process, that lasting change takes time. I can't get discouraged when I don't instantly change, just like they can't quit because their first steps don't get them to the top. I just have to keep moving in the right direction, and eventually I'll be able to look back and see all the progress I have made, even if I am still surrounded by snow.
In addition to taking steps in the right direction, the other key element to the boys confidence and success was that they were not alone. Having each other on the journey helps them feel safe and gives them encouragement. And they knew I was right there watching when Nathaniel would turn around to say "look at me mom!" or Samuel would cry because he had fallen down and it's just so hard to get back up when your layers of clothing are almost as wide as you are tall.
We need to encourage each other and pray for each other on this journey, especially when we're walking through the difficult times, or just the mundane times. And we need to remember that God is  right there to pick us up when we fall or point us in the right direction if we lose our way.
Winter really is almost over here in Minnesota even if it doesn't look like it. Jesus speaks the same truth in our hearts today, that the difficult things we face won't last forever. Just keep going in the right direction, encouraging each other, and know that He is there. You'll make it through your winter, and you might even enjoy the journey.