Frozen Solid

It's grey outside. The sun is barely shining through the clouds and fog that have set in. There is still a remnant of snow on the ground. It's so cold that it hasn't turned to slush or been mixed with mud to be brown. The snow has been plowed out of the way and it is full of marks. 

Frankly, looking outside today shows a pretty good picture of what life in January can be. And yet, the snow that is frozen solid and no longer beautiful, but not ugly either, is speaking to my soul today. 

How often does my soul get frozen solid....How often does it go from being beautiful to just a step up from ugly? 

You know...The days when you just haven't felt quite right. Maybe you feel a little more SAD than usual. Maybe you feel a little LOST. Nobody likes feeling that way. We fight it, but we fight it the wrong way. We end up FROZEN there. Frozen right where we do NOT even want to be. 

The snow and weather have zero control over themselves. 

We do. We have everything we need in Jesus and we are called to work out that salvation that has been given to us. 

Stop and read 2 Peter 1...Reread verses 3 through 10. 

Whether we are in a "beautiful" season, on our way to be frozen in a time of "not quite ugly", or totally frozen solid, there is a place we MUST go. 

We must continually GO to God and ask Him to GIVE us the grace we NEED for each day.

 GRACE is what gets us through. GRACE is something that you and I need DAILY.

At the risk of sounding a little mystical, I'll say this....Spiritual warfare is REAL. I think that I thought it was seasonal. You know, like sometimes the battle rages and sometimes we only know victory and peace. Yeah, that's not the way it is. 

EVERY single day is a day when Satan is laboring to bring destruction and ruin in SOULS. 

EVERY single day is a day that God is laboring for His glory and the joy of His people in Him - to bring life and growth in SOULS. 

You are not alone. There is GRACE for today, seek the Lord and don't be content without it. 

Ephesians 6 walks us through the GRACE God gives His people to get through each day....And I have been coming back to one specific piece of that grace for months now. 

Ephesians 6:16 says this, 

"In all circumstances take up the shield of FAITH, 

with which you can extinguish all of the flaming darts of the evil one;" 

By God's grace, faith is mine. Faith is a beautiful thing...It brings life and right living. It is hope and feeds hope. It is an anchor to the soul. Now, I see that it will ALWAYS EXTINGUISH (totally put out) ALL of the things satan throws my way.

To be honest, I don't even need satan's help...I throw a lot of darts at my own soul. I'm realizing that the FAITH that come from God will totally put those out too! 

Take up that shield of faith, it's yours and it does what God made it for. Always. Everytime. 

Happy Friday!