Winter is not my favorite season. I love it through Christmas and the New Year, but then winter becomes tedious. It's cold and bleak. I don't want to go outside. The blue sunny skies often turn grey. The grass turns a dirty tan. The grey sky and tan grass blend into a dreary landscape. Genesis 8:22 tells me that "As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease." 1 Thessalonians 5:18 says "give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus." So I tend to think that I need to find a way to be thankful for winter.
I also believe that people go through spiritual seasons, seasons of the soul. They don't necessarily line up with the timing of the physical seasons outside, but similarities exist between what happens to the natural word and what happens in the world inside our hearts. You might have an internal spring while the world is in winter. Spring bubbles with joyful new life. Summer is full of hard work while your character grows but you know in the end it will produce a harvest. Fall is where all your effort to grow plays off and you see the fruit of your labors. Then winter hits. What is good about the winter of the soul?
The dreary skies can really dampen my soul. Sometimes it's hard to remember that the sun will shine again. But it does. It always returns to cause the plants to spring to life. No matter how long winter may seem, it doesn't last forever. The cloudy skies may hid the sun for a while, but eventually its light and warmth fall on the grown again. I experience this spiritually too. Sometimes God's love and favor seems far from me, like they are hiding behind a cloud. Sometimes I've caused this by walking away from Him, but not always. It's good for me to remember that His love and favor are still shining even though a cloud might be blocking my view of it. So winter causes my faith to grow - and that's a good thing. Hebrews 11:1 tells us "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." God's love and favor is there for me, even if He feels a million miles away and I can't see it right now.
Winter is a time when the plants rest. Growth slows or even stops. Rest is a good thing. When things slow down, I have time to reflect. Winter's reduction in growth and activity allows me to ponder all the new things I tried in those seasons of growth and life. Which new things help me to become more Christ-like? Which new things need to become a habit? Which habits need to become a thing of the past? Psalm 139:23-24 remind me that reflection is a good spiritual habit. Soul winter gives me a chance to allow the Holy Spirit to make me aware of what needs to change.
Finally, some seeds require a cold snap to stimulate them to germinate. This happens in my spiritual life too. Sometimes I read my Bible but I don't really get anything out of it at the time. Sometimes I pray, but my prayers are not answered. I follow God's leading, but nothing changes. I'm sowing spiritual seed, but I'm not seeing any fruit from my labors. The seed's need for cold to begin to grow reminds me that sometimes I need to patiently persevere in doing good. Galatians 6:9 reads "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up." Winter reminds me to preserver.
There you have it: three good things about winter to encourage your soul. Faith grows when I have to live on God's promises instead of what I see and experience. Rest gives me the time to reflect on the direction I'm going. Perseverance keeps me going until I see the fruit of spiritual labors.
