Frozen

           It was "bitterly" cold outside early in the week. The temperatures during the days (factoring in windchill) were a chilly -25ºF on Monday. Schools were closed around here. You can all give a groan for my students who carried on at home in spite of the low temps...they agreed that they'd rather be done with school sooner than take a day off. We did make a batch of snow ice cream during school. We couldn't resist trying a recipe from one of my favorite blogs.
            There's one thing you really don't want to lose in a house during a cold snap. Any guess what malfunctioned when the temperature dropped this weekend? Charles, my hubby, woke up at 2 am on Monday morning and realized he felt colder than normal. He went to the thermostat to turn it up, and that's when he saw that the furnace wasn't keeping up with the temperature programed for that time in the morning.
              A friend of mine posted a Jack London story on her Facebook page Sunday night that I read while trying to get Mr. Blue Eyes to go to sleep. Mr. London's descriptions were really tangible with all the cold we had been experiencing, and I felt like hyperventilating during most of it. Mr. Blue Eyes struggled to go to sleep till after midnight,  and I struggled not to have flashbacks about "To Build a Fire". Two hours later, the baby was up again, and my hubby was on his mission to keep us warm. He brought in a kerosene space heater that he had bought for his outbuilding a year ago (yes, for those concerned, we did leave a window partially open for venting), and soon we were blasted with some comfort. Kerosene space heaters are noisy...really noisy. Mr. Blue Eyes was terrified of it. I think he was fighting off an ear infection or suffering from a pounding headache (Gracie pulled a blanket out from under him, giving him a very hard landing on our kitchen tile and a nasty bruise under his eye..."I was just trying to get him off!"). He was miserable. Three hours later, he finally konked out. When we woke up, Charles had begun deconstructing our bedroom closet, so he could fit a ladder in there to access our furnace, which is located in the attic. Crazy right? The previous owners converted our house from baseboard heating, and their furnace guy stuck it in the attic. It wasn't long before he found a tube that drained water which was frozen solid. He called a professional to service it, but he decided to try a few things while he waited. It's moments like these that I am super grateful for a problem-solving engineer like Charles. The next thing you know, he had the blow dryer up in the attic, thawing the line. Sheer brilliance,  I tell you! He had the furnace up and running in no time, and my Jack London-inspired fears were laid to rest. There was one momentary glitch that caused a lapse in heat, but after he blew the water out of a component,  it ran beautifully the rest of the day.
           This past week has been an unexpectedly hard one for me emotionally. Our previous church always did a corporate fast for the first three weeks of the year, as a way of dedicating the year to God. I decided to carry on with the idea even though we live in a different state. Fasting for me usually equals feeling closer to God and an increased sense of hopefulness in how He will move in my life. Instead, I have felt frozen. Frozen by fear. Satan knows our weaknesses and will come at them with everything he's got. He knows my weak spot, and he's chosen this fall to target it. He's been coming after my family. I'm afraid of them being hurt by what I am helpless to prevent. Worse yet, I'm afraid God won't act on my behalf. I've watched my son go through pneumonia and ear infections. I watched my daughters go through physical illnesses and emotional distress as well.
           This past week, I read in Matthew 4 about how Jesus was tempted while He fasted for 40 days in the wilderness.  I guess fasting doesn't always guarantee feeling good, huh? If you remember the story of Jesus being tempted, you'll remember how He was victorious: with scripture. 1John 4:4 says, "You, dear children, are from God and have OVERCOME them, because the One who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world." We are capable of winning our battles because of the Holy Spirit within us. I'm notifying Satan, right now, that I will not accept his temptation to doubt God's power. God's timing may be different than mine, but He will be victorious in doing something in my family that's better than I can imagine.(Rom. 8:28) I am believing by faith that He will reward me for earnestly seeking Him (Hebrews 11:6). and trusting that He loves my family even more than I possibly could. "At all times, I will bless the Lord. His praise shall continually be in my mouth." (Ps 34:1) These are just a few verses that are warming up with. It time to thaw out and function fully again.

           Tonight, our church handed out prayer cards with topics to pray over for our city. One of the verses struck me as very fitting to this situation: "Arise, cry out in the night as the watches of the night begin;pour out your heart like water in the presence of the Lord. Lift up your hands to him for the lives of your children..."(Lam. 2:9)

What verses are you using in your battle?  I'd love to add some to my arsenal as well...