As I sit in my bedroom, swaddled up in my warm and luxuriously fuzzy housecoat, I await a fierce ice storm which is supposedly coming our way, because, for some reason, my employer gave me the evening off work, I hear the salt truck out front of my apartment. I see many posts on social media about concerns of losing power. The candles are burning a warm woodsy aroma that sort of eases the chill of the night air seeping through the cracks of my bedroom window sill. As I prepare to eat my decalescent gourmet noodles popular among college students, I can't help but wonder, am I prepared for the ice storm? Sometimes in life, we have these ice storms come along, and we must be prepared ahead of time to ensure that we can handle the icy roads.
First of all, we need warmth. Whether it is a blanket, a housecoat, a sweater, a fire, or a warm beverage, I think we can all agree it beats shivering. I also like the extreme difference, so when it's cold out, I LOVE turning the heater on and getting as warm as possible under a plethora of blankets with warm fuzzy socks on and a cup of hot chocolate. God LOVES when we are on fire for Him. When we are serving Him, we are considered "hot" and that is pleasing to him. Revelation 3:15-16 says, "I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth." Friends, are we on FIRE for God, or are we just lukewarm? If we are, when that cold when blows, we're not going to have the warmth we need.
Secondly, we need to salt our roads. Driving on snow is one thing, but I abhor driving on icy roads. So what do we do, we lay down the salt on the roads and sidewalks so they're not as slippery as snot (pardon my analogy.) Obviously there's a difference between the salt you savor with food, and the salt you throw out on the ground. Are you the savory salt that is pleasing by showing the world the truth, or are you the salt that gets thrown on the ground, driven all over, and walked upon? Matthew 5:13 states, "Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherwith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men." Or are you a pillar of salt like Lot's wife? AHHH...haha just kidding, we'll save that for another time.
Third, we need to have our candles and flashlights ready. When the power goes out, it gets REALLY dark if the sun isn't shining. This world is a dark place, too. John 11:10 points out, "But if a man walk in the night, he stumbleth, because there is no light in him." John 3:19 says, "And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than the light, because their deeds were evil." However, if we have the SON shining in us and through us, we can walk in light. "For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light:" Ephesians 5:8. Be constantly ready to shine your bright light in this world of darkness!
And perhaps a very important adage to this list is food. I mean, I dont know about you, but I'm a baptist, and it's been said we like to eat a little too well, and that's certainly true of me. Nonetheless, I'm not one to crazy panic about not storing up on water and bread, especially this go around because it will be 60 degrees on Tuesday and all melted, but there's a real panic for some people to go buy out the whole store's supply of bread and water. However, Matthew 4:4 declares, "But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." My friends, have we been in His Word? Have we hid His Word in our heart in efforts of always having it handy?
If we are prepared, the storms never seem quite as rough, don't you agree? So my friends, are we prepared for whatever storms that roll into our lives? I pray that we are!
