Making Lemonade in the Winter

You took the sourest lemon that life has to offer and turned it into something resembling lemonade." - This Is Us, NBC

The time is currently 12:50 am... and I simply dropped by to copy and paste the blog post I had previously prepared in the note section of my iphone.

Well, to my surprise as I was editing the material to present to you today, God literally scratched the entire recipe and said, "Dri, you need to go deeper". So here we are about to dig deep into another dish.

As you can imagine, I was not prepared to literally whip up a whole new meal (at such short notice)... so as I write today please understand that the words to follow are not mine, but those of the Holy Spirit. I am just the messenger to what He has to say.

This means one thing, we are both in for quite the treat.

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Yellow. Yes, this is a color, but it is also a mood.

Typically it is associated with happiness, joy, and light... but at some point in time, in life, the yellow begins to fade. The once illuminance hue of yellow quickly becomes... well... mellow.

The yellow of the summer has turned to the blue of the winter.

That bring us to the present. I just checked the weather app, and I kid you not that it is exactly 32 degrees Fahrenheit here in Silver Spring, MD. That's right it is at the freezing point of water, and no that is NO coincidence as to what I want to talk to you about today.

My question is, are you at the freezing point of life?

Has the seasoning of your heart been consistently marinating in winter ? Have you been simply going through without a break through? Are you experiencing physical, relational, mental, or spiritual lost?

If you answered yes to any of these questions... I say, Praise God. Yes that's right Praise God! You are at the right place, at the right time. I have no clue who this post is going to touch, but God wanted me to tell you that today you are going to Make Lemonade in the Winter.

Before we begin the step by step process, you must know that you have officially entered my kitchen. I too have found myself frozen and numb from the bitter, cold of life's longest winter. For me, this was weathering through the effects of sexual abuse and nonexistent self-love. A true winter storm. Now, I understand that this may not be the exact ingredients of your story, but winter does not hit all places (or people) the same. One thing is for sure though winter will... still... hit. Unfortunately there is no escaping this season and whether you like it or not...Winter is coming (pun intended).

But do not be fearful my friends, I am here to tell you that there is good news ...are you ready for it? Here it is...

After winter comes spring.

Spring is a season marked with new growth and elevated temperatures. Do you see where I'm going here? Journeying through your "winter seasons" of life will cause you to not only grow, but to elevate! I am living proof. God took the most flavorless circumstance of my life, and turned it into a brewery of blessings.

He wants the very same for you.

I'm sure you know or at least heard of Jack and Rebecca from the hit tv show "This is US", right? Well, they can also attest to this growth and elevation aspect of life (hence the introductory quote to this post). No, don't worry I won't spill the beans for the few stranglers out there that haven't seen "This is Us" LOL. But what I will tell you is that, in season one of the show the young couple met remarkable tragedy. Despite this extremely unforeseen circumstance, as the episodes continue to unfold we see time and time again how they purposefully turned life's lemons into lemonade.

Now, I want to teach you how to make the same batch of lemonade.

First things first, I want you to go get your lemonade stand. This is really about maintaining a winning position and posture. There is no doubt that life can be rough, but if we are rooted in Him we can and we will do all things through His strength! Additionally, this step alludes to obtaining emotional endurance, and understanding the significance of long-suffering. Some times it takes true patience to prosper.

If you don't learn how to properly stand up now, you will surely fall right back into winter, when you should be springing into summer.

Secondly, gather your materials. Once you learn how to stand you can make movement towards a new season with the resources and provisions God has provided. In this case, all you will need is lemon, sugar, and water. The lemon represent the struggle/s you are currently facing, sugar represents positivity and optimism, and water is the essential element representing Christ.

Last but not least, work. Isolated by themselves, lemons are tart and distasteful, but once squeezed and coupled with sugar and water... wha la ! You got your some self some refreshing lemonade. But this lemonade, or what I like to call transformation, can not be made with out putting the ingredients together at once. Christ, the struggle, and optimism are all essential to creating the BEST you from a broken situation.

Family, I truly hope this writing encouraged you today! I want you to know that a new season is ahead. Don't give up and don't give in...the winter is only temporary. Through it all, remember the best lemonade once came from a lemon!

Always served with love,

Dri ♥