Sitting here this morning watching the news, I'm heartbroken for the families of the children who are stuck at school, and for the people who are still out in the cold, stranded in their cars or away from home. I can't imagine the feeling of helplessness or hopelessness they must be feeling right now. I pray that they are leaning on God to give them the strength to push through this crazy and dangerous time.
Being from Indiana, where snow in abundance is the norm, I was baffled at first when it snowed here in Alabama the first time. Everything SHUT DOWN. I don't mean school was delayed or cancelled, or that there were some businesses that didn't open on time. I mean EVERYTHING literally shut down. Roads, schools, businesses, state agencies..EVERYTHING. The sense of panic down here is unreal to someone who has never been afraid of winter weather. But I can tell you that after that first time, I understood why it was such a big deal.
Alabama is not equipped to deal with ANY snow or ice. I mean, come on, down here, 50 degrees is freezing!! So even the slightest bit of snow or ice means driving is almost impossible. Nobody knows how to drive on it. Yesterday, a 20 minute drive took my sister 3 1/2 hours. No joke. There are still people who are stuck on the road in Birmingham that have been in their cars since yesterday morning. There are children who didn't come home from school last night.
Needless to say, Alabama is in need of prayer right now. Prayer for the officials who's job it is to decide how to deal with this situation, prayers for the people suffering, and prayers for the first response teams that are out there doing everything they can to assist and protect.
I'm thankful to be at home with my precious little boy. I'm thankful that my husband isn't being forced to drive on unsafe roads to work. I'm thankful that my family is all safe and sound in their homes. I hope everyone who has been as fortunate as I have is thankful too.
Being from Indiana, where snow in abundance is the norm, I was baffled at first when it snowed here in Alabama the first time. Everything SHUT DOWN. I don't mean school was delayed or cancelled, or that there were some businesses that didn't open on time. I mean EVERYTHING literally shut down. Roads, schools, businesses, state agencies..EVERYTHING. The sense of panic down here is unreal to someone who has never been afraid of winter weather. But I can tell you that after that first time, I understood why it was such a big deal.
Alabama is not equipped to deal with ANY snow or ice. I mean, come on, down here, 50 degrees is freezing!! So even the slightest bit of snow or ice means driving is almost impossible. Nobody knows how to drive on it. Yesterday, a 20 minute drive took my sister 3 1/2 hours. No joke. There are still people who are stuck on the road in Birmingham that have been in their cars since yesterday morning. There are children who didn't come home from school last night.
Needless to say, Alabama is in need of prayer right now. Prayer for the officials who's job it is to decide how to deal with this situation, prayers for the people suffering, and prayers for the first response teams that are out there doing everything they can to assist and protect.
I'm thankful to be at home with my precious little boy. I'm thankful that my husband isn't being forced to drive on unsafe roads to work. I'm thankful that my family is all safe and sound in their homes. I hope everyone who has been as fortunate as I have is thankful too.
All that being said, this whole situation got me really thinking about what it means to lean on God. It brought to the front of my mind all the things I have going on that I should be leaning on Him for. I'm still trying to control things that are beyond me. Things that I know He wants me to give to Him.
I don't know why it is so difficult for me to relinquish that control. Why do I think that trying to figure out a way to take care of it myself is a better solution that allowing God to take the burden and handle it?! It sounds so foolish when I actually put it into words. I'm nothing without Him, so why not just trust Him?!!
I'm dealing with a situation where my instinct is again, to blame someone or something else, when what I really need to do is accept responsibility and pray that God deals with my heart and this situation how He sees fit. The outcome may not ultimately be what I had hoped for, but I know that He will never lead me the wrong way or deliver me to a situation where I'm not meant to be. He always has my best interest at heart, even when unknowingly, I don't.
"Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers his way, over the man who carries out evil devices!"
Psalms 37:7
This verse has popped up multiple times for me this week, and I am certain the reason is because I need to remember not to worry. That in the end God will never let me truly fail. There may be obstacles, but never will He allow me to suffer in vain. Being prayerful and faithful is all we really can do.
I don't know how long your typical blog post is supposed to be or how often is customary to update/post a new entry. But I'm finding that I enjoy writing my thoughts down. For now though, I'm going to go snuggle with Gram and watch cartoons.
I don't know why it is so difficult for me to relinquish that control. Why do I think that trying to figure out a way to take care of it myself is a better solution that allowing God to take the burden and handle it?! It sounds so foolish when I actually put it into words. I'm nothing without Him, so why not just trust Him?!!
I'm dealing with a situation where my instinct is again, to blame someone or something else, when what I really need to do is accept responsibility and pray that God deals with my heart and this situation how He sees fit. The outcome may not ultimately be what I had hoped for, but I know that He will never lead me the wrong way or deliver me to a situation where I'm not meant to be. He always has my best interest at heart, even when unknowingly, I don't.
"Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers his way, over the man who carries out evil devices!"
Psalms 37:7
This verse has popped up multiple times for me this week, and I am certain the reason is because I need to remember not to worry. That in the end God will never let me truly fail. There may be obstacles, but never will He allow me to suffer in vain. Being prayerful and faithful is all we really can do.
I don't know how long your typical blog post is supposed to be or how often is customary to update/post a new entry. But I'm finding that I enjoy writing my thoughts down. For now though, I'm going to go snuggle with Gram and watch cartoons.