My aching back

Yesterday and today we've had a lot of snow to shovel around here (14 inches of snow, and more coming). I've not done work like that in quite a while, and even though my 82-year-old mother-in-law did a good deal more shoveling than I did, my back and shoulders are complaining. But it felt great to work hard (even though I rested lots and only did a little), and the snow is simply lovely, so even with an aching back, i am glad to have done a little shoveling.

My aching back reminds me of many things. It reminds me that things do not always go the way I wish they would, but they do always go the way God wishes them to. It reminds me that I am temporary and wearing out, but inside I am eternal and will shed this sad, broken-down body one day. It reminds me that I am expendable; if something needs to be done, it will be done by somebody whether I do it or not. It reminds me of the blessedness of sleep and rest that God gives us.

It's amazing how God covers everything in beauty. Right now, every weedy, barren patch of ground looks just as lovely as every carefully-tended garden. Imagine what we will be like when He clothes us in Christ's righteousness. Now *that* will be something to see!