Happy New Year!

I was running errands with my dad yesterday here in Longmont, Colorado, and it is really nice to run errands in this town because a lot of stores are actually within walking distance. What a treat...no driving! So Dad and I took a long walk to the hardware store yesterday.

Our walk was really nice, but it was SO windy....kind of like the Santa Ana winds in southern CA, only since it's mid-winter in Colorado, these are not warm winds! This didn't affect us so much on the way TO the hardware store, because the wind was at our back. But on the way back? Whew. It was a battle. We put our chins down and pressed hard into the wind.

At one point, I made some sort of exclamation about the cold hard wind, and then Dad did something really touching. "Tell you what," he said. "Why don't you walk right behind me, and let me shield you from the wind a little bit?"

I took him up on it, and sure enough, the strength and bitterness of the headwind was significantly reduced. I still felt an awful lot of wind, but it wasn't nearly the way it had been.

And we walked this way for a while, all the way home in fact, the wind whipping around both of us, practically deafening. A lot of the way, I was thinking what a great dad I have.

And then I was thinking about God, suddenly, and what a good Father He is to us, too. Why am I sharing this? I am anticipating the new year....there happen to be a lot of personally exciting things coming up in 2009 for me. But I have some sorrows too, and I also realize that this year promises to be a challenging one for many people. Economic woes, increased global poverty, other circumstances...maybe it's not going to be the easiest year for many of us. But through it all, we have a Father Who says, "Tell you what. Why don't you walk right behind Me, and let Me shield you from the wind a little bit?"

May your new year be blessed and better than you ever could have imagined -- even if it's a little bit windy. We've got such a great Father, and He's asking us all the time, I think, if we'd like to step behind Him, follow Him home, and experience a little shielding from the winds.

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And just a quick update: I plan to get back out to CA by the end of next week. Bear and I will be driving my car out from CO, and he arrives today here in CO. I am so so sorry if I haven't returned your emails lately -- it's been a busy time with family here. I so look forward to connecting with you once again when I am out in CA. Thank you for all you've done for me this year -- it is so hard to believe it's over!!