Icicles

I don’t know about you, but I have quite a few icicles hanging from my house. The combo of the snow, rain, ice, etc. has pretty much filled my gutters and they’ve frozen. Although it slowly melts, the rest of the stuff from the roof is melting too, and it’s all trying to find somewhere to go.

I find icicles interesting. They start out as just a small drip, then they freeze a bit and continue to build and build and build. They get longer and longer, until at some point they break off and fall to the ground. We have one on the side of our house that we noticed last night that was almost as tall as the side of my house. I have no idea how it hasn’t broken yet, but I’ll be very interested to see if it’s there when I get home.

Icicles can be used as an example to represent stress and anger in our lives. They also start out small, and if not dealt with right away they can continue to build until at some point we just break. Do you have any icicles of stress or anger in your life right now?

The key to not getting to that breaking point is by taking care of them early. There are things you can do to relieve stress, decrease anger, and keep from getting more icicles as well. Just like with the gutters of the house where you can put heated coils or do other various things, you have to find ways to keep these things from becoming a giant problem. If we allow the icicles to keep growing we could have major problems with the house, as it could even drag down the gutter. What are you doing to keep that from happening with the icicles in your life?

My suggestion this week is to find ways to take care of the issues before they start. Prayer in my mind should be first and foremost. Then, have a good support system. Your spouse, friends, church body, etc. are there to help, so use them. Be willing to express your feelings to others to help you vent and get rid of some of the pressure. Also, be willing to take a time out. Get away from the issues even if it’s just 20 minutes sitting at McD’s in the morning one day a week, walk around the reservoir, etc. Find something that you like to do and do it.

Icicles are just a part of winter, and a part of your life. Finding ways to prevent and deal with them when they develop is the key. I pray that you’ll find ways that work for you, and that from this point forward you’ll be stronger in your walk with Him because of it. God bless.