The Seasons of Life...

"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace." Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

     Yesterday as I ran errands after work, I had some quiet time to enjoy the beauty of fall that seemed to be everywhere I looked. It may not be considered extravagant beauty to some people, but to me it was like being surrounded by the most elegant masterpiece. There were wide fields of cotton all around, just waiting to be harvested, and trees with sections of branches that looked as though they had been gently dipped in gold, auburn and red. Fall is definitely my favorite season of the year! I love the gorgeous colors, the pumpkin pie, football games and the marching band, leaves crunching under my feet, and evenings snuggled with my children as we drink hot chocolate. Fall is beautiful and full of comforts, it amazes me!

     Well, have you ever wondered what the world would be like if there were no changing of the seasons… Have you ever considered how very different life would be if we lived in a never-ending season of spring? How would it be to always have to skate around on the ice rink of winter? We live in a world that God created to shift perfectly from winter to spring to summer to fall. The changing of the seasons helps to make a perfect environment for us to live in. We have a time of sowing in the spring and reaping the harvest in the fall. Many animals have a time of stocking up before their long winter’s nap. All of these seasons work together to create a beautiful balance for our world.

     In the same way, our lives are made up different seasons. The seasons of our lives are not always predictable. You may believe you are in the deepest, coldest, most barren part of winter, when actually you are about to step out into the bright, thawing sunshine of spring. And in exactly the opposite way, we may feel that we are in the most beautiful season of our lives when everything seems to be going just right, and then suddenly the rug gets pulled out from under us and we find ourselves in a wilderness of desolation.

     We can’t know when these seasons are going to change. We don’t have a calendar that applies to life. However, when we are seeking the Lord and listening to His voice, He is able to prepare us for the seasons that lie ahead. It's His wisdom that will lead us through the darkest valleys and the loneliest paths. And even when we seem to be in the most perfect seasons of life, we will only find true joy and peace in our Savior’s love.

     There have been times in my life when I was happy, fully content, and did not want to be moved. But suddenly I found myself in the midst of a changing season. I found myself moving from the fullness of summer into the coldness of winter, where all of the leaves have fallen off the trees and left what seemed like only bareness and emptiness behind in my soul.  I have been in that place where the things that had made me comfortable and that I had held onto so dearly were completely stripped away. It was a place of unease, of questioning, and doubt. These are the times that we have to learn to trust. This is where we find out what our faith is actually made of, when we have to put action to the words that have been coming out of our mouth.

     The amazing thing about the changing of a season, no matter how uncomfortable it may be, is that this is also the time that we learn to fly. When we are holding on tightly to the One who holds the universe in His hands, then no matter how our surroundings change, how people change, how things change, we won’t lose our way because He won’t let us go. In the times that I have felt like I was backtracking, or that I had lost all that I had worked for, or was unhappy with the direction God was leading me, I learned to trust the Lord because He ALWAYS knows what is best for us! In every one of those situations, God was using that season in my life to help me grow spiritually. Just as a mother eagle has to make the nest uncomfortable in order to get her young to leave the nest, God has to make us uncomfortable in order to move us! It may not always be easy, but the changing seasons in our life are meant to draw us closer to Him and to bring about maturity in us. Those seasons are meant to mold us into who God is calling us to be. Daniel 2:21 says, “He changes times and seasons; he deposes kings and raises up others. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning.” God changes the times and seasons. He knows what we need and exactly when we need it. He knows when we’re ready and we’re not ready. His timing is always perfect.

     As we take in the beauty of the winter, spring, summer and fall, we must remember that the seasons in our lives are filled with beauty, artfully crafted by the God who loves us infinitely, and essential for us to grow in Him and in the callings and gifts He has placed in each of us. We may not always understand what He is doing in our lives, and we may not be able to see the big picture, but we can rest in the knowledge that He knows the right time for everything in the seasons of life. We only have to trust Him.