Weather of the Heart

I have this application on my computer that constantly brings up a popup window urging me to upgrade a certain type of software. It’s there every time I bring up my computer. Sometimes it drives me nuts!

I believe it’s just a microcosm of what happens in real life. Things constantly bombard us, tugging at our minds, pulling at our hearts.

And we let it happen. We try to ignore the life “popups”, the ones that say something isn’t right. The ones that say complacency is fine, life is good, don’t change or that change will be too hard.

Then one day it hits us. Everything is not fine. We moan and groan that it’s too late to change, it’s going be hard, and it’s going to ruin everything in our lives. We writhe in agony at the thought we need to move, we need to change.

Autumn used to be my favorite season. I love the colors, and the cooler weather and the anticipation of the upcoming holidays. As I’ve gotten older though, autumn has also reminded me that winter is coming. Those cold, dark days when driving is a hassle, when the sunlight dwindles in the southern sky, and the snowflakes seem endless.

God is good at giving us reminders about the seasons of our heart through nature. He knows there are going to be hot summers of fun in our lives that spill over into beautiful autumns of contentment that eventually diminish into cruel winters.

Fortunately he gave us the best season of all, spring.

I know that when the relentless winter wind whips against me, draining me of my strength, there is still hope. Spring will come. It might take longer than I wish, but the bitter winds will not prevail. Snow banks will recede, tiny flowers will sprout their determined heads and birds will return in song.

It’s no different with life. The inhospitable winters of our hearts will not prevail if we do not let them. Opening our souls can dissolve anger and resentment like a melting snow bank. Tiny flowers of hope from loved ones push through the frozen ground. Encouraging words from friends sing out to us. Eventually we find that we don’t need the layers of protection that surround our hearts like the parkas of winter. We shed the tears and shed the pain, washing away the winter and helping the flowers of our lives grow.

But we have to take that first step. We have to let go and let God. And sometimes that step is scary. But He does know what is right for us.

It is only when we don’t listen to the nagging popups that we get stuck. It’s when we don’t heed the warning in our hearts and souls that we will sit in the everlasting frozen winter. Complacency says enjoy the fire and ignore the weather. But eventually you can’t.

So listen to those life popups. They’re trying to tell you something. Maybe it’s time for a change.

-And maybe I need different software that better fits my needs. ;)