The weather recently has been a godsend for people who like to make small talk. Sleet, snow, ice, and rain have been pouring down on us for weeks, it seems. As cold, wet, and muddy as it is, I keep reminding myself that all this unpleasant weather now will pay off in just a few short months. Our students are in a similar spot. The early spring is a busy time for them. Classes, homework, training, and retreats combined with the weather tend to produce fatigue. We don’t think this is a bad thing, however. These are just the kind of conditions we so often need in life to learn patience, endurance, and reliance on God for his strength in the midst of difficulty. Just as with this strange weather, we want our students to look beyond their immediate trials and circumstances to understand that in God’s providence, trials now will produce so much fruit in us later on. James said it best when he wrote: “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing” (James 1.2–4). By faith we and our students are learning that when life is hard, rather than seeking sinful comfort or a way out of difficulty, we can persevere in faith and praise God, knowing that a rich harvest is just around the corner.