Punxsutawney, Philippians, Patriots, and Prognosticators


So this morning Punxsutawney Phil came out of his hole, didn’t see his shadow, and as a result we get 6 more years of the Patriots winning the Super Bowl. I know, I know, it’s 6 more weeks of Winter, but considering that Winter is filled with cold, darkness, and death it feels kind of the same.

The actual tradition was brought to America by German immigrants, but officially became a day in 1887. Today thousands of people visit Gobblers Knob in Punxsutawney, PA each year on February 2nd to see Bill Murray making Ice Sculptures.
If you’ve never seen the 1993 film Groundhog Day, it’s a lot of fun. In it Bill Murray plays a meteorologist who gets stuck in Punxsutawney living the same day over and over again. It’s kind of ironic since Groundhog Day is actually about looking ahead. For most folks, it isn’t only the weather we’re interested in. We wonder about virtually everything in the future. Jobs, school, relationships, and more can fill our minds. We go to bed not wondering if tomorrow morning a Groundhog is going to be scared of his own shadow, but rather will we be frightened by what we see.

Jesus knew tomorrow would stress us out, but that’s not how he wanted things to be. Rather he taught us; 

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Matthew 6:34

The Bible doesn’t teach us to live recklessly, but it strongly teaches to avoid anxiety.

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Philippians 4:6

I suppose Punxsutawney Phil has a 50/50 shot at being right each year. As legend would have it, if his shadow scares him he runs back in his hole. In real life the future is far more challenging to predict. Yet, when it frightens you let’s not run and hide. Rather let’s run to the one who holds the future and cast our cares on him.

Following the Son,

James A Williams

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