exceedingly, abundantly

Back on the fifteenth of December,

I spoke of my fascination with snowflakes.

I love their uniqueness

and

the accumulated snow just makes everything beautiful!

I noted in that post,

‘We’re expecting snow …

nothing like what we would get in Boston, MA where I grew up.’

Well, we got snow that week –

And we got a ton of snow this past weekend –

I have been forced to eat those words which I spoke not too long ago.

Thirteen inches of snow!

It immobilized our city – and not just our city

All along the east coast, and even into the deep-south,

there are reports of the havoc the snow has wrought.

Exceedingly, abundantly

above all we could ask or think!

SNOW!               SNOW!               SNOW!               SNOW!

I know it has been a traveling nightmare for many.

It has also caused significant power outages –

the weight of the snow has burdened tree limbs

causing them to snap and fall on already compromised power lines

It is not a great situation and I would not wish it on anyone.

However, I cannot get fully disappointed by all this snow

It has actually been termed a ‘blizzard’

a long severe snowstorm;

an intensely strong cold wind filled with fine snow;

an overwhelming rush or deluge

An overwhelming rush or deluge –

That is my favorite definition and why I am excited and energized by all of this snow.

This has been a somewhat unnatural natural occurrence –

both the volume and regions affected.

Millions of unique snowflakes have made up this winter storm

and caused accumulations unlike anything many of these states have seen in some time.

The snow totals here in Virginia were third greatest since the 1800’s!

It truly is more than we ever would have anticipated.

Eventually, it will melt as all snow does –

But today, while my yard is still filled fluffy white goodness,

I grab hold of this takeaway:

Behold, the former things are come to pass,

and new things do I declare;

before they spring forth I tell you of them.

Isaiah 42:9

God thunders with His voice wondrously,

Doing great things which we cannot comprehend.

For to the snow He says, 'Fall on the earth,'

And to the downpour and the rain, 'Be strong.'

Job 37:5-6 NASB

He orders the snow, 'Blanket the earth!'

and the rain, 'Soak the whole countryside!'

No one can escape the weather—it's there.

And no one can escape from God.

Wild animals take shelter, crawling into their dens,

When blizzards roar out of the north and freezing rain crusts the land.

It's God's breath that forms the ice,

It's God's breath that turns lakes and rivers solid.

Job 37:5-6 MSG

“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the LORD.

“And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.

For just as the heavens are higher than the earth,

so my ways are higher than your ways

and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.

“The rain and snow come down from the heavens

and stay on the ground to water the earth.

They cause the grain to grow,

producing seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry.

It is the same with my word.

I send it out, and it always produces fruit.

It will accomplish all I want it to,

and it will prosper everywhere I send it.

Isaiah 55:8-11 NLT

AND WHAT HAS THE LORD SAID?

Look at the new thing I am going to do.

It is already happening!

Don’t you see it?

I will make a road in the desert

And rivers in the dry land.

Isaiah 43:19 NCV

However that which is spiritual was not first,

but that which is natural,

and afterward that which is spiritual.

I Corinthians 15:46 NKJV

I feel another blizzard on the horizon –

I have been feeling it for quite some time now – long before the snow fell

This natural snowfall, this blizzard, this overwhelming rush or deluge –

It speaks to me of something significant that is occurring in the spiritual. 

Proverbs 31:21

When speaking of the virtuous woman notes,

'She is not afraid of the snow for her household,

for all her household are clothed with scarlet.’

Like her, I do not fear for my family – naturally or spiritually

For we are clothed in scarlet – covered by the blood of the Lamb

Door have been opened that no man can shut

(Rev. 3:8)

God is indeed working all things together for the good

(Rom. 8:28)

He is supplying every need according to His riches, which are unlimited (Phil. 4:19)

He is revealing long hidden mysteries through dream and visions

(Joel 2:28-29)

He is doing exceedingly abundantly above all I could ask or think

(Eph. 3:20)

So I say –

Let it snow!     Let it snow!     Let it snow!