Footprints in the snow

Here's a blurb from the poem, "Footprints in the Sand"
The LORD replied:
"My son, my precious child,
I love you and I would never leave you.
During your times of trial and suffering,
when you see only one set of footprints,
it was then that I carried you."

I grew up in Iowa, which is over 1,000 miles from the beach. To me, a walk on the beach is a vacation! A rare treat! It's often bothered me that when the man in the poem saw only one set of footprints, he automatically assumed that God had abandoned him. Has my faith become spoiled so much that when something goes wrong, I automatically assume that it is God that has left me and not that it was I who wandered away? Do I think of my faith like a walk on the beach? Something that is supposed to be easy, relaxing and fun? I like to think my Iowa upbringing has made me a little tougher than that! It's hard to imagine my faith journey as a walk on the beach.

I like to think of it as a walk through the snow. Sometimes it's a whole bunch of fun. However, sometimes your faith gets hit with an unexpected, icy snowball. Do I have a faith that can brush off the snow and keep going? It doesn't take many Iowa winters to learn to look for a set of footprints in the snow. One set of footprints does not automatically inspire the fear of abandoment, in fact, it's quite the opposite. One set of footprints becomes a clear path through the challenging terrain. It means that someone bigger and stronger has gone before you and made a difficult journey a little bit easier to manage. When my faith journey leads me along a snow covered hill, I am grateful to see a set of footprints. It's a reminder that God has gone before me to prepare the way. It means that God knows my struggles and has found a way for me to get to the other side.

I give thanks for the set of footprints in the snow.