In the Bleak Midwinter

I heard Gabrielle Aplin and Hannah Grace’s version of the song In the Bleak Midwinter the other day, and I was struck by its beauty. 

I noticed two things about this song. Sometimes, I feel like *I’m* in the bleak midwinter. After a cold cloudy day, or when circumstances seem limiting, it can feel like being in a cold spell. Sometimes, things *do* seem bleak in the middle of winter. We can forget that God is right there with us in those seasons, too. We ask ourselves, Where has the sun gone? Where is God in this situation? And then, when the sun does pop back again (as it always does), it’s also a reminder that God doesn’t remain hidden forever. The beauty of sunlight reflecting on the beauty of nature – I am reminded of God’s love. God gave us such beauty in this world – we just need to keep our eyes open for it in every little moment!

The second thing I noticed were the lyrics,

Oh, what can I give him, poor as I am?

If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb

If I were a wise man, I would do my part

Yet what can I give him

I will give my heart

Such simple, yet beautiful lyrics. Initially, our first instinct is to look for some way to earn our grace. It seems too simple – that all we need to do is give ourselves to Him, wholly, through faith. The truth is that the most important thing we can actually give God *is* our heart. It seems simple – it is – but it’s certainly not easy. I want these lyrics to be my prayer, too. It feels hard, but we can rest easy, because our heart is in good, good hands! The hands of the Father, our Maker. We cannot even fathom the love that He has for us.

Ephesians 3:17-18 says, “Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is.”

And, going back to my previous point, every time we see something beautiful, we can thank Him. He has filled the earth with His beauty. Just like Him, it is everywhere, and we just need to look for it as daily reminders of His goodness.

Now, I want to challenge *you* to take a moment and remind yourself of God’s constancy: He is with you and He is the same, both in the sunny summer days and in the bleak midwinter. Then, consider this: are you trusting God with your whole heart? Regardless of your answer, try asking God to saturate you with more of His love. When we begin to understand the depths of His love for us, we can better understand just how worthy He is of our trust!

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I would like to ask for prayers on meeting my fundraising goals. I still need about $4,800 to be fully-funded in order to continue on my gap year, and I am currently behind on my deadlines. All financial support goes to mobilizing me so that my squad and I can tangibly support the local community in Guatemala this January through partnership with local ministries, and it also supports all the necessary expenses of food and travel to get us there and keep us there. All direct donations through my blog site are tax-deductable, but I can also accept donations through my Venmo at @shananz. Thank you all so much for your prayers and all the help that has gotten me this far!

P.S. These are the full lyrics to the song! I highly encourage you to listen to it. The beauty really can’t be captured in words alone.