Hold On

This is the tree in our front yard.

Sad, barren and bleak.


It's a very pretty red maple when in bloom. The leaves are so vibrant.


But sometime around November, the leaves one by one fall away. They get blown by the wind. They get pelted by the rain. They get heavy with the burden of the first snow. They die. And then they fall. They just can't hold on.


But look closely.

See there?

One little leaf.

It has held on.

Through wind, cold, snow, rain and storm. Through all of winters icy blast. It alone has held its grasp.

It has been shaken, blown, weighed down, seen others fall.

Yet still it remains.

Time and time again this winter I have looked at that leaf and been reminded of the similarities between that leaf and the Christian life.

Sometimes we are shaken to the core. We get blown around, weighed down. We see far too many fall.

But still we hold on.

We grab hold of Christ and we weather the storm.

It's not easy.

Satan will throw at us way more than winter threw at that leaf.

But we hold fast.

Why? Because we know that winter doesn't last.

Soon Jesus will calm winter's icy storm.

And the promise of life renewed and beautiful is an assured hope that keeps us in it's grasp when we have almost fallen away.

In the promises of Christ we stand against all the storm can send our way because we know there's life, beautiful new life, ahead.

For us not just in this life, but in the life to come.