White as Snow

     When I moved south, I almost left my shovel behind.  We had been working our way down the east coast from northwestern New York to northeastern Pennsylvania to south central Pennsylvania, and now to southeastern Virginia!  We had more snow than anyone should have to shovel when we lived in the first two places.  We moved to Harrisburg, PA and they had almost 2 feet that winter.  “More snow than we’ve seen in 10 years,” they told us.
     Our first winter here, we had a grand total of 4 inches.  I liked that.  I don't ski or skate or snow-mobile or any of that wintry stuff.  The next year, my sister visited me from northeastern New York state.  We had 10 inches the day after Christmas.  She said "I could have stayed in New York and had this."  I was glad I had brought my shovel.  People kept telling me “you won’t see snow like this again for 10 years,” but then came this year.  The day after Christmas, we had 14 inches.  OK...I'm done whining.  After all; a lot of people in the country are having incredibly snowy winters this year.  And, I realize that some folks absolutely love most of the things associated with snow.  I shouldn't keep them from their fun.
     Besides, I have to admit; it is pretty.  And, I want to say that there is one benefit we have in being able to view a soft velvety blanket of pure white snow.  We can picture in our minds what the Lord was talking about when he spoke to the Israelites about what He would do with their sins.
     “Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord.  Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall become like wool.”  (Isaiah 1:18, ESV)
     There is nothing that we can imagine whiter than fresh snow.  All commercials for various bleach products aside, fresh snow can’t be beat for its clean, white brilliance.  When the sun shines just right on it, you almost can’t look; it is so pure and bright.
     That’s what God did with my heart when I trusted Jesus as my Savior.  I had all manner of filth inside of me.  I preferred darkness because any light simply showed off my dark heart.  Then the moment came when I humbled myself and came to God saying “I know I’m a sinner…I know I can’t go to Heaven…I trust Jesus as my only hope of salvation.”  At that moment, God took my sin-stained heart and cleaned it completely.
     For all my (good spirited) whining and complaining over a few days of snow, I am thankful to be able to picture in my mind the amazing power of God to transform my filthy heart into something so beautiful that it’s purity almost defies description…except to say it is as white as snow.
            “Thank you, Lord, for cleansing my heart.  Thank you that you didn’t just cover over my sin, but that you took the crimson colored blood of your only Son and washed my filthy heart clean to a purity that is almost beyond words.  It was all your work and I didn’t deserve it.  That’s why you call it grace.”
            I hope these words resonate in your spirit.  Let’s remember how God sees our heart the next time we see some fresh new snow.

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