Give the Snow of God's Word the Time to Melt…

Some of God's deepest words don't soak in right away — give the snow time to melt.

When the Word Doesn't Land Right Away

You open your Bible. You read the passage. And — nothing. It sits there. Hard. Cold. You can see the words but you can't get them in. You wonder what's wrong with you.

Nothing's wrong with you. That's just snow.

Two Ways It Falls

Remember what Isaiah 55:10–13 says: "As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands. Instead of the thorn bush will grow the pine tree, and instead of briers the myrtle will grow. This will be for the Lord's renown, for an everlasting sign, which will not be destroyed." (NIV

His Word coming down from heaven like rain and snow. But here's something easy to miss: God names both. Rain and snow. They don't work the same way.

Rain soaks in immediately. It hits the ground, waters the earth, and things start growing. Sometimes God's Word does that. You read it and it drops straight into your heart. You get it.

It's alive.

But snow? Snow lies on the hard surface of the earth and does nothing — at first. The ground is too cold. Too hard. The temperature has to change. The sun has to come and do its slow, warming work before the snow melts and seeps in. And here's what they tell us: melted snow is even more beneficial for the earth than ordinary rain.

God's Word works the same way.

A Hard Saying

The disciples hit this once. Jesus said something that didn't go down easy, and they said it out loud: "This is a hard saying; who can receive it?"

That's snow. They weren't rejecting it. They just couldn't take it in yet.

Don't Reject It — Just Let It Sit

Here's my counsel. When God's Word comes into your life as snow — hard, difficult, not making sense yet — don't push it away. Let it lie on your heart. Wait. Give the sun of God's love and grace time to rise and do its warming work. Your heart will soften. The Word will melt in. And when it does, it will go deeper than the rain ever could.

Sometimes it comes as rain. Sometimes it comes as snow. But always — if we respond rightly — it brings God's ways and thoughts down to us.

Prayer Response

Lord, I recognize that sometimes when I read Your Word, I cannot receive it right away. But I place it in my heart and decide never to reject it, so that I do not sin against You. I trust that Your Word will, in time, have its full strength and effect in my life. Amen

Pastor Dick's Devotionals