Today we are getting the first real snow of the season. I admit, it isn’t really pretty yet. The snow is fine and wet, just beginning to cover the ground. The grass still peaks through and the concrete is warmer than the snow, so it melts off pretty fast. Today it isn’t giving me warm fuzzies.

My granddaughter, on the other hand, is thrilled. She FaceTimed me this morning while she ate her breakfast. She immediately informed me that it was snowing at her house and wanted to show me. And then she wondered if it was snowing at my house. “Yes, it is,” I said and showed her. She squealed with delight.

While she ate, she plotted her first moves of the day. She would put her boots and hat and mittens on and go outside into the snow. Her delight was contagious.

I didn’t run to put my boots on to wander out into the snow, but I desired the wide-eyed wonder of a child at the first snow of the season. How often have I missed the wonder of the moment because my perspective needed adjusting?

But back to my thoughts for today. I sew. And while I sew, I learn. I learn about sewing, of course. But I learn about life.

Years ago, I was asked to take part in a wedding. The bride wanted me to wear not only a particular color, but a particular fabric that she purchased for me. Unless I was going to wrap myself in a sari, I would need to make something with this piece of fabric.

I purchased a pattern, thread, buttons, elastic and a zipper and sat down to make this dress. I pulled the pattern and instructions out of the packet and started reading. It wasn’t long until I was overwhelmed with the project. There were so many steps and techniques I did not understand. Tucks and darts, button holes and zippers. My heart sank. This was too complicated and I wanted to throw it all in a bag and lock it away in my closet.

And then I heard a gentle reminder to take it one step at a time. Just do step one. Step two will make more sense after step one is finished.

I can get ahead of myself in life. I look ahead to what might be and where I want to be and the steps to get there are many. They twist and turn, I think of all the mistakes I might make along the way, I ponder what might go wrong, I fear I might not be able to finish. What if I look stupid? And I am paralyzed by the process.

But what if I stop and take it one step at a time. I don’t have to eat the whole elephant at one time. Just one bite at a time.

When my oldest daughter was sixteen, she was diagnosed insulin resistant. This was totally new territory for us and it looked completely overwhelming. She needed to change her diet drastically, including packing her lunch every day for school. We both felt a bit intimidated by all of it.

One evening we talked about the “foreverness” of this diagnosis. Neither of us thought we could do this forever. So we agreed that we would just do today. We didn’t need to do it for tomorrow because it is today. So we did today. We did the first step.

Are you overwhelmed by the process? Do the steps to where you want to go seem many, varied and complicated?

Just do the next right thing.

In Matthew 6:34, Jesus says, “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” In other words, do the first step and step two will make more sense.

Until tomorrow…

May the Lord bless you and protect you.

May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you.

May the Lord show you his favor and give you his peace.

Numbers 6:24-26