After Every Winter
Genesis 1-7
Thursday, January 1, 2026 | Brandon Bachtel
And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. As we’ve read from the divine pages of Scripture, we quickly see God the Father establish His intricately woven design through Jesus, the creator of all things by His spoken Word (Colossians 1:15-20; John 1:1-5). From nothing, Jesus created something. Something special. Something ordered. Something sacred. Something that was uniquely made for Him and His glory.
God breathed life into man. Made in His likeness, God created male and female to bring glory to Himself. Distinct from the rest of creation, mankind was designed for a fruitful, pure, and everlasting covenant relationship with God and with one another, as they worshiped and served the living God through the cultivation and preservation of all with which they had been entrusted (Genesis 2:15). It was glorious. It was divine. It was heavenly, until it wasn’t.
The beautiful design of God was abruptly skewed by the dominion of sin. A crafty serpent, abdication of leadership, forbidden fruit, and a root of pride brought upon mankind a curse so deep and so dark, that it seemed as if it could never be broken.
The beautiful beginning was blemished.
The love story was tarnished.
Condemnation, judgment, separation, pain, chaos, and death ensued.
The world grew dark.
Sin prevailed.
Evil reigned.
In the Chronicles of Narnia, The White Witch had Narnia under her thumb. In the dreadful, cold, bleak, and dark winter, she ruled a land of hopelessness. Mr. Tumnus exclaimed to Lucy, “Always winter and never Christmas; think of that!” “How awful!” Lucy replied.
Friends, as we read through the Bible chronologically, don’t become disheartened. Though we read many hopeless accounts throughout the pages of Scripture, continue to look for the hand of God at work. Stay vigilant and alert; and when you can’t see God’s hand at work, seek to find His heart. Remember that after every winter, there is a spring. Despite sin’s curse, there was one who was cursed on our behalf (Galatians 3:13).
Seek Him and you will find Him (Jeremiah 29:13).