Winter was always a special time for me in the hills of the Northeast, but nothing compared to the anticipation and drama in the promise of a full-fledged snow storm. I would crawl under the thick blankets of my bed at night, my mind filled with wonder at what the frosty morning would bring.

I was usually up extra early, and if an accumulation of snow had fallen the night before I would take my place at the kitchen table, hot chocolate in hand, and listen to the list of school closings on our large AM radio with the amber lighted dial. On the days that I heard the announcer call out the name of the school that I attended, my demeanor would change from one of anticipation, to that of pure joy and excitement.

My day's plans would take priority and I would bundle up in my winter clothes for a day filled with sledding, building snow men, and making snow angels in the new fallen drifts.Time seemed to fly on those wintry days and I recall the warm feeling of knowing that I didn't have to change classes when the bell rang, or listen to the steady drone of the long and boring study hall. I was free, and it all happened because of snow!

On a much larger scale, God promises us the freedom that we crave in this life from worry, sin, and quiet desperation. Through the example of clean, white snow (the kind that covers the ugliness and brown of the earth), our Creator gives us a picture of what it means to be covered with the perfect pureness of Christ's life.