What season are you in?
While your understanding of the current situation or season may seem slow in coming, and years may pass (sometimes a lifetime) before God gives you a clue or opens your heart and eyes to receive the truth, He will counsel and guide you, and He will strengthen your relationship with Him, especially as you embrace the next truth.
Embrace the seasons of life for what they can be. (Faith, Philippians 4:6, Isaiah 55:11)
I think this truth involves more than just hope. It includes faith. I’ve found that kind of faith as I’ve embraced the character of God—and what those seasons have taught me about Him.
And while the seasons of our lives are not predictable in their intensity or length, they do point to One who never changes and is always dependable—the same, year after year:
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 3:8 NLT)
Nature’s seasons may not parallel the seasons of our lives by age.
Sometimes our circumstances can dictate our seasons, and we simply ride them out. I know some who, through no fault of their own, are bearing the weight of unending challenges that seem like hot summers or cruel, icy winters. And it feels like they are stuck in seasons that will never change.
In either case, Jesus is the same: the Provider of all our needs (Philippians 4:6), the Creator of all that is beautiful, the Sustainer of Life, and the Hope of a better life to come when we draw our last breath.
I don’t know where you are. I don’t know what season it feels like you are experiencing right now. But I do know this: God is not finished with you yet. He will help you embrace every season with joy and gratitude, to accept the things you cannot change, to change the things you can (like the Serenity Prayer) and to renew your trust and hope in a God who still moves impossible mountains. Your situation may remain unaltered; but your approach and attitude can change.
Practice thanksgiving, not just in November, but all year long. Finding joy in the little things and giving God thanks for all life’s seasons—the good and the challenging—will make a difference to you and others around you.
No matter where we are in life, we can find His purpose for each season.
I am constantly asking God to show me the way through the seasons of my life. Do I mean only my age and my current situation? Yes and no. In good times, in hard times, in times of adjustment, and in times of resting, I petition the God I have embraced since early childhood. He prods me through seasons of repentance and faith, through discouragement and new goals, and through victories and failures–all the time.
To me, embracing the seasons of life means embracing the One Who gave His life for me, and who loves me with mercy and grace through every season—no matter what.
I pray you will experience that same intimacy with Him—no matter what season of life you encounter.
I personally am coming out of a season of darkness. Some days the darkness was so intense that there was no light to be found anywhere. It’s been a year of healing, reading, studying, meditating, praying, analyzing, accepting, growing and surrendering. It was only when I was able to surrender it all to God, that the clouds started to part and the light found its way through. I have had the same words spoken over me often. Be still. Slow down. I am with you. Stop trying to write your own story. Breathe. Let me lead. Heal. My time, my will. I’ve got you. Trust me. It was only recently when I realized that the darkness seemed so intense because I was actually the light. It takes great strength and courage to be the light. Read that again. It takes great strength and courage to be the light. One thing I have learned as well is to be careful what you wish for. When you are least expecting it, God will give you what you ask for. Do not be afraid. Be grateful. You may not truly believe that you deserve it, but you do! And when he gives it to you, cherish it, fight for it, don’t let it go, and never take it for granted. If it’s meant for you, it will not pass you by. Whatever your season is, embrace it to the fullest. There’s a reason you are in it. And only God knows what it is.