Some people love snow, and some despise it. Perhaps most people are somewhere in between. They find the beauty in it…until it starts to melt and discolor. They enjoy the peace of it…until it interrupts their schedule. They enjoy making memories in it…until it causes more work or inconvenience.

Isn’t that how we approach so many things in our lives? We appreciate something…until we don’t. We commit to something…until we don’t. We are humble until we’re not, compassionate, generous, and faithful until we’re not.

It’s rarely a 180-degree about-face.  It’s not all or nothing.

There’s abundance or provision of some sort. We find joy in it until we begin to think of the negative side of it all (and it’s important to see both the positive and negative, because that’s reality), and we shift. We focus on what begins to ebb away our joy—joy that deeply resides regardless of our circumstance. We can acknowledge the yucky truth of something yet still choose faith, joy, and hope. And we can help someone else through their own snowstorm.

I don’t know what the “snow” is in your life right now—what’s ebbing away your joy. Pause long enough to honestly and humbly reflect and decide what you want your next choice to be. Intentionality matters in this life—every single day.