Tis Only A Season

God is a God of change. This is especially evident by the seasons He created. Spring represents a season of new growth, summer is a season of embracing life, fall is a season of colorful preparation, and winter is a season of rest and dormancy.

God even created seasons in our lives that seem to parallel our earthly seasons: infancy through childhood is an innocent time of exploring our world, teenage years are wrapped around discovering who we are, adult years are dedicated to raising our family and working for our future, and our senior years are a time of rest and reflection.

The first two stages of our lives quickly fly by, but our adulthood can last for decades. This begs the question: how does our Creator want us to spend this very long tenure of life? Does He have plans for us, and if so, how can we know what those plans are?

Throughout Jesus’ ministry we find one major theme: servant hood. Jesus’ life was centered on service to others. He healed people, fed people, and even washed their feet. God has gifted each Christian to serve others, too, and all within the midst of living our daily lives. While pursuing an education, marrying, starting a family and earning our living we are to be sensitive to filling the needs of others. In other words, servant hood is to be part of who we are, day in and day out, all of our lives.

It’s relatively easy to serve others when we have the time, energy, and the financial means to do so. The hard part comes when we don’t feel good, when we are pinched for time, or when we lose our job.

My husband recently joined the ranks of the unemployed, and not by choice. After almost 40 years of service to our country (in some capacity, including the Viet Nam War), he was given a ten day notice that his contractor position was being abolished. Even though we knew this day would eventually come, it wasn’t our plan to have it arrive so soon. And quite honestly, we panicked; that is, until we remembered that God had allowed it. While my husband’s job loss was a surprise to us, it was not a surprise to God. God knew it was coming and He has a purpose for it. My husband and I both know this will be a season of leaning on the Lord in a new way, but we also know it is no time to stop serving or to stop giving. When we do our part and stay obedient to God, He promises to do His part and take care of us.

There are a lot of people in this country who have recently been forced to switch careers or move into smaller living quarters due to a sudden job loss. It’s tough out there right now, but if we remember that it is only a season, and that God has allowed it for a reason, it can be easier to face. After all, He is a God of change. When He says, “I want to do a new thing,” we need to trust Him and keep our hand in His. We need to face it, not run from it. We need to remember that this “imposition” is part of His overall plan for our life. Someday we will look back and see the good that came from it. We will see several secondary changes that turned our scary journey into an intimate time of growth with the Lord, which could not have taken place any other way.

“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.” (Eccl. 3:1)

Praying you enjoy this season of your life,
Connie