If you live in the Midwest, you have good reason to want to forget the winter of 2013-14. It was brutal. Phrases like “Polar Vortex” and “Winter Misery Scale” provided new ways to make us feel even worse about the weather. My North Dakota roots are deep, having been born and raised here. I have yet to spend a winter season elsewhere, so I figure that gives me the authority to confirm that, yes, it was a bad winter.

One typical January morning, the wind blew steadily, gusting up to 60-plus miles per hour. Standing at the kitchen window that overlooks the covered patio, I watched apprehensively as the outdoor fan shook and shuddered. Before long, one blade flew off in the gale. Those blasts continued to rattle the now off-centered fan, and I watched helplessly as, one by one, each of the remaining blades flew off with gusto into the tree row.

I texted my husband at work, with a countdown: “Two down and three to go..." and so on until just one blade and the fan assembly were left. Ah, well, the outdoor fan was a nice idea, but what were we thinking? It is North Dakota after all, and that means there’s going to be wind. And the wind this year was magnificent, if you like to talk like a meteorologist. In fact, I heard one say this was a “winter of awesomeness”. Somehow, just hearing that phrase made me pause to think about last winter with different eyes. God’s power in nature was surely on display.

Just a few months later, the winter wind was but a memory. On Memorial Day weekend, under blue and sunny skies, we planted our vegetable garden with faith in God’s wondrous creation miracle.

“The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.”  (Genesis 1:12)

Nothing grows overnight, but I have found myself walking to the garden nearly every day now to witness this miracle. The photo above is a green bean, three weeks after planting, pushing up through the cracked earth. Think of the power in this seedling, which gives it the strength to move and reach and grow heavenward! 

It is truly awesome how God gives us examples in nature, no matter the season, to show us His power. There will be seasons in our lives where, like that fan, we will be buffeted about and become off center. But I can thank Him for these challenges, because I know He is there in all seasons. We just need to dig deep enough to find Him. 

I urge you to consider joining a small group as a way to deepen and grow your faith so you'll be better prepared to weather the storms of life. After retiring from my career, I made an intentional effort to cultivate my faith by joining book, Bible, and prayer groups. New friendships have blossomed, and I feel connected, comforted, and inspired by these many unique women of faith, all in different phases of their spiritual walks. I have found more of God through their lives and their testimonies of His presence and power in all seasons.

When you are in a spiritual winter, what spiritual tools do you use?

Think about faith-based small groups you have joined. What have been the rewards of joining a small group?

Royann Bold has lived in North Dakota her whole life and is a prairie girl at heart. She and her husband are empty nesters, having seen their three sons take flight to three different states. She also recently retired from the 8 to 5 grind, and is awash in pursuing her interests of writing, reading, volunteering and lifelong learning. She thoroughly is enjoying her free time to participate in Bible and book studies. Read more articles by Royann.