Snow got you down?

(by guest blogger: Annette Pagura)

If I said, “Snow storm coming…”, I think there would be a collective groan. I thought about sharing an acronym for SNOW I came up with while my car was a sled on Interstate 270 last week—Sloppy Nasty Obstinate Weather. Then I remembered Pastor Dave Cady’s message at the February Emmaus gathering about “grumbling” and instead sat in my car—in the garage after I arrived safely home—and said a prayer of thanksgiving. MORE

Here we are in the season of Lent anticipating the holiest of events in our Christian walk—and I am grumbling about the driveway covered with snow, the pokey drivers in front of me and the tightness in my shoulders from grasping the steering wheel too hard. I have to stop the grumbling. Then, I thought of Job and his trials. Job 9:27 says, “I will put off my sad face and wear a smile.” Okay, that is exactly what I need to do—put off sad and wear glad.

We have been watching the Olympics (that just concluded this past Sunday) at home. Again, I was struck by an illustration from the bobsled event. It is a metaphor for our Lenten journey. I will use the two person bobsled event to explain—two athletes stand together at the top of a curvy, icy shoot poised for action. They each have a role—the driver does a visualization of the track by anticipating curves and banks and narrow passageways. The starter says “Go” and both bobsledders push a sled down the starting lane and then hop into this sled. The driver steers, and the second person tucks down behind the driver and doesn’t bring their head up until they cross the finish line. Talk about relinquishing control. Talk about trust. Talk about teamwork. That is so not me—but isn’t that precisely what I need to do? Get in the sled, duck my head and let God steer? Then, when I cross the finish line on Easter morning, I will see my Lord and Savior with a stop watch saying, “We WON!”