A good example of this happened recently (February 8, 2014) in Portland, Oregon, at Reed College. The area had just had its third snowstorm, and students were having a good time with it. A couple of students decided, that since there was plenty of snow to work with, they would try to make a giant snowball. Urged on by the crowd which had gathered, they rolled it down a sidewalk, trying to make it as big as possible.
They were successful. At least in making a giant snowball.
Apparently the calculations of these math majors was off by a little bit. They overlooked the fact that they were building this giant snowball on a hill above one of the dormitories, and as their creation rolled, it got away from them.
By this time it was so big and so heavy that they couldn't stop it, and it rolled into one of the dormitories, knocking in part of a bedroom wall. The maintenance worker who sliced it up for removal estimated that it weighed about 800 pounds. A college spokesman said it caused $2,000 to $3,000 in damage, but thankfully, no one was hurt.
Now, these guys aren't dummies. Reed College in Portland is one of the most distinctive institutions of higher learning in our nation. The average high school GPA of an entering freshman is 3.9. The Princeton Review calls it "intellectual" and "free-thinking." Which just goes to show you that even very intelligent people can do some dumb things sometimes.
That sort of reminds me of my life at times. I look back on the years that have passed and I realize that there have been several "snowballs" that began rolling, and soon there wasn’t anything I could do about it. You've been there, too, haven't you? Regardless of your efforts, things just went in a direction you didn't expect and certainly didn’t want. And the more time passed, the bigger the problem became.
Some of those 800-lb. snowballs have left damage behind, just as the one in Portland did. It's been very encouraging to me to remember that even my most colossal problems receive the help and guidance of the Lord--yes, the same One Who created the Universe by speaking it into existence! Every once in a while the devil tries to tell me what a fool I've been to trust God for the difficulties of life. But then the Lord speaks to me, and reminds me that He has never forsaken me, that He's always been with me, even in the darkest times.
Especially in the darkest times.
So the next time your problem feels like an 800-lb. snowball rolling uncontrollably down a hill, remember this comforting verse from Psalm 107:13--"Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress."
--Rocky Henriques, www.uticabc.com