It was the latest of a series of arctic blasts that had made for a brutal Winter here in the mountains of my home. I woke up shivering and shook my head as I saw the frozen ice patterns on the inside of my windows. After a hot breakfast I bundled up to go down and warm up my car before driving out. The house door opened with a loud crack as the ice broke on the door knob. I stepped out into the deathly quiet of the bitter, morning air. Almost instantly I could feel the hairs in my nose freeze. As I walked down to my car the wind started to blow and I braced myself against it. It felt like being hit. The pain from the wind chill was incredible. My bones ached from it. I wiggled my toes to keep the feeling in them. Even breathing in the crushingly cold air made my lungs hurt. I turned on my car and the thermostat inside it read eleven degrees below zero. I started scraping the ice and snow off the car windows and wondered again how long it would be until Spring arrived. Finally, I climbed into the car and looked at my frosty mustache in the mirror. It looked so ridiculous that I laughed out loud. "Well, at least I am not cold on the inside," I said to myself.

You see, over the years I had learned that there are a lot worse things than being cold on the outside. Being cold in your heart, frozen in your soul, and isolated from God and love were far worse than having chattering teeth on a January morning. I thanked Heaven again that I had finally learned to invite God's love into my heart. I knew that no matter how cold this world could be at times that I could always count on that love to keep me warm.

May your own heart always burn bright with the fire of God's love. May your spirit shine with its light. May you share your love too with everyone around you. And may you always make this world a warmer place just by being in it.