Covered in Snow

So if you live here in East Texas, you already know that it snowed last night! And it wasn't just our usual few flurries that melt on contact (which are rare in themselves). It was legit! It really snowed!

We looked out the window this morning, and everything was covered in snow! Now, if you're used to this kind of thing, it might not mean as much. But I just feel like a kid again when it snows. And it was even better because it was Jocelyn's first time to ever get to experience snow. We had a blast!

Our morning included all of the essentials for a snow day... building a snowman... drinking hot chocolate... a snowball fight with Mammaw... creating a special iTunes playlist... and just walking around a lot taking in the beauty of it all...

When I was younger, our home was near a small patch of woods that we always loved to play in. One year, we were burning some trash in a barrel, and the grass caught on fire and sent a line of flames straight for the woods, and a patch of brush and trees caught on fire also. This was a little terrifying, to say the least. But fortunately, the fire department made it out in time to stop the fire from spreading or reaching any of the homes on the other side of woods. Nothing was damaged -- except for this whole patch in the woods, which was thinned by the fire and torn up by the trucks. It looked really sad.

That winter, East Texas was graced with a layer of frozen precipitation. It wasn't really snow - just ice that time. But it covered most of the yard. And that patch of woods that had been ripped up by the fire and the trucks was covered too. I remember going back there and seeing it. All of the ground that had been burned, deformed and ripped up had become a winter landscape. And it didn't look like a scar anymore. It was beautiful...

We all have been hurt by someone or something. And we have all made destructive choices which led to pain and ruin. And there have been times there is no hope in sight. And we are left burned and scarred...

There is a great song by my favorite band U2 called "Grace." I want to share the lyrics with you:

Grace
She takes the blame
She covers the shame
Removes the stain
It could be her name

Grace
It's a name for a girl
It's also a thought that changed the world
And when she walks on the street
You can hear the strings
Grace finds goodness in everything

Grace, she's got the walk
Not on a ramp or on chalk
She's got the time to talk
She travels outside of karma
She travels outside of karma
When she goes to work
You can hear her strings
Grace finds beauty in everything

Grace, she carries a world on her hips
No champagne flute for her lips
No twirls or skips between her fingertips
She carries a pearl in perfect condition

What once was hurt
What once was friction
What left a mark
No longer stings
Because grace makes beauty
Out of ugly things

In Isaiah 1:18, God says, "No matter how deep the stain of your sins, I can remove it. I can make you as clean as freshly fallen snow. Even if you are stained as red as crimson, I can make you as white as wool." (NLT)

You see, there is the way that everything works. Some call it karma. Some call it sowing and reaping. But either way, it's this idea that you always get what you deserve. You make your bed and you sleep in it.

But there is another way... the way of grace.

And there may still be hurt and pain and loss. But when God covers us with grace, just like the winter snow, He transforms our brokenness into beauty...

Right now my yard is covered in snow.

And right now, I am covered in grace.