When Winter Comes

Reflected in the seasons of our lives, and our souls are the seasons of nature; winter, spring, summer and fall. Winter for many is the season that is most dreaded because of the harshness that is associated with it. It is a season of contemplation, and one that is not so welcoming. Synonymous to the word winter is biting, bleak, crisp, brisk, cold, bare, chilling, among others - hence you can understand why. Even with the challenges that winter presents, there are many positive aspects of winter both naturally and spiritually. In the natural, it allows the soil and plants to reset themselves, thus yielding a greater harvest, and in the spiritual it also strengthens us as our roots get deeper in our purpose.

Through her personal stories and life's lessons, Sandra shares how her faith strengthened her resolve during her winter seasons in several areas of her life. Seasons when the cascade of snowflakes blanketed her dreams, leaving a landscape of bare trees and brown grass. She leaves the readers optimistic that the winter season, which represents life's challenges, does not define them and that the season was not ordained to kill them. In fact, it is to strengthen them for their next harvest. In sharing her fleece that kept her warm during some of the most trying periods of her life, it is her hope that it will bring warmth to someone who might be experiencing their winter.