Becky Kopitzke

Devotions for Moms

The Sound of Snow Falling

Snowpants. Jackets. Boots. Gloves. Hats. Scarves. Hoods. Tissues in the pocket and chapstick on the lips. After a good 20 minutes of bundling and coercing, my kids were ready to venture outside.

Our first snowfall of the year.

The girls tromped onto the front lawn glistening three inches deep, while I stopped to unhook a shovel off the garage wall. Wet snow slid easily along my path, sparkly white mounds tinted pink and blue from sidewalk chalk we’d drawn just days before.

No matter what the calendar says, winter always seems to take us by surprise.

I settled into the hardy rhythm of pushing snow, listening to the clack of metal hitting cement, the steady swoosh of a shovel head sweeping across our frozen driveway. Behind me, my girls giggled and flapped their limbs on the ground, making snow angels. All around us, the silence of a gentle snowfall swirled in our ears.

“Mom—do you know what the goodest part of winter is?”

Straightening upright with the shovel in hand, I smiled at my five-year-old. “What, sweetheart?”

“Right here.” She extended a handful of packed snow, then raised it to her tongue and licked. “Mmm, yum!” A few feet away, my toddler, too, stood with a chunk of fresh snow in her mitten, lapping up the icy treat like it was a cherry Sno-cone in June.

A delighted chuckle rose from within my belly.

Winter’s not all bad.

I lifted my eyes. Huge, fluffy snowflakes danced slowly to the ground. No two flakes alike, isn’t that crazy? These intricate crystals—such a mind-boggling illustration of God’s infinite creativity.

Perhaps the true gifts of this season aren’t the shiny ones under the tree. They’re the little boot prints on my lawn, crisp air filling my lungs, a quiet afternoon to relish my children.

Gifts, not givens.

“He says, ‘Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth. The LORD Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress,” (Psalm 46:10–11).

What a welcome invitation. It begs for my soul this week, filled with festivities and heartache both. I rush and I wonder why. Until a snowfall makes the world pause for a minute. Then I look to the sky, and remember.

God is here.

He never left us.

He never will.

Enjoy the countdown to Christmas, my friends. I wish you all a little bit of snowy weather for your souls.

If this post encouraged you, please pass it on. You might also like Surviving December: Notes From a Type-A Mom, If You Give a Mom a Minute, Honey, Sweetheart, Sugar Pie, and God Doesn’t Ration Candy Bars.

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Linking up with: The Better Mom, Playdates With God, Mommy Moments, The Mom Initiative, Tuesdays Unwrapped, Titus 2sdays, Grace at Home, and Things I Can’t Say.

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Comments

  2. Becky, that was beautifuly put. Can’t say anything else but that. Merry Christmas to you and your family. Irene & Jerry

  3. May we never tire of God’s new mercies every morning. Great is His faithfulness. Pausing in the stillness with you today.

  4. Oh, yes, some snow for my soul.. how I need that gift this week. As always, I love the way you turn ordinary life into worship. Blessings, friend!

  5. We are having our first snow as I write, and I can see the snow softly falling onto the limbs of the trees outside my window.

    That hush you speak about-I love that! My hubbie and I will walk up our dirt road, and you can practically feel the blanket of quiet. It is a thing of beauty!

    Thank you for the image of you and your girls in the snow. We are many years past that, and it is a sweet one to replay!

  7. I so love snow — we haven’t had enough of it in Nebraska these last couple of years. But I heard some is on the way tomorrow.

    Wishing you a blessed Christmas, Becky (coming over from Emily’s Tuesdays Unwrapped).

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