Getting in shape for spring

“The North wind doth blow and we shall have snow, 

And what will poor robin do then, poor thing? 

He’ll sit in a barn and keep himself warm, 

And hide his head under his wing, poor thing.”   

— 16th century Mother Goose poem         

     Lately, I’m beginning to feel like poor robin. I keep wondering when will the snow cease coming and allow that lovely sunshine that blessed us today, to usher in spring. 

     I’m ready to say goodbye to winter. 

     

     Today, I observed a large, noisy family of Canadian geese soaring in beautiful formation. 

     I wondered if they were returning from an earlier trek south, or just being revived by the beauty of the day on an "exercise mission," getting their wings in shape. 

     

     So many events keep happening in our world, some great, others not. 

     Being proud of our Canada’s Olympians, I was pleased to see them being given a hero’s welcome as they returned, sporting their 29 medals, 11 of them gold. 

     My heart continues to grieve as I hear of the on-going Hell happening in the Middle East. One wonders how humans, created in God’s image could bow to such evil. But Jeremiah 17:9, in God’s Word, reminds us ... “the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” 

     There are those who look toward the future with fear.

     Statistics tell us one in four Canadian adults take anti-anxiety medications. Though we are living in a culture that pushes the word of God away, I have found it to be a great remedy to fear. It points to the One who knows the future and assures me He is in control. 

     Recently, the passing of evangelist Billy Graham got a small spot in the daily news. His messages throughout many years, was "faith in Jesus alone, giving hope of eternity with Jesus." 

     As a young person and a new christian, I was influenced by his then growing ministry in the 1950s. 

     Graham worked for racial harmony and equality, insisting on integrated seating at his crusades in the southern United States. Reaching out to people of colour, he had a warm friendship with Martin Luther King Jr., as they shared their respective roles in the civil rights struggle. 

     Today, we find our world still racially divided. As Dr. Graham faithfully preached over the years, we all need a new heart in order to live peacefully with our fellow man. 

     In Ezekiel 36:26 the Bible says, “A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh.” 

     May we try to approach each day in the strength and optimism our Heavenly Father gives us when we ask.  

     Have fun with the following poem. 

• First read “downward.” 
• For uplifting thoughts, — “read from the bottom up.”      

Today 

Today was the absolute worst day ever  

And don’t try to convince me that  

There’s something good in every day  

Because, when you take a closer look, 

This world is a pretty evil place. 

Even if  

Some goodness does shine through once in a while Satisfaction and happiness don’t last.  

And it’s not true that  

It’s all in the mind and heart  

Because  

True happiness can be attained  

Only if one’s surroundings are good  

It’s not true that good exists  

I’m sure you can agree that  

The reality  

Creates  

My attitude  

It’s all beyond my control  

And you’ll never in a million years hear me say  

Today was a very good day.

by Chanie Gorkin 

— beulah