Seasons

Mar 11

“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.” - Ecclesiastes 3:1-2

We are born. And we will one day die. But so much happens in between.

Like birthdays that come every year, we live in a world that is based on predictable patterns and cycles. Our lives, like the rest of creation, are based on a seasonal design. Think of the physical world. We have winter as a period of dormancy and rest, followed by a spring of new life and growth. Then summer brings maturity and the beginning of the harvest, which is completed in the fall. Then life slows down in preparation for the return of winter.

Similarly, many aspects of our lives are seasonal as well. Our work, both paid and voluntary, changes as time passes and our purpose grows. Our relationships ebb and flow, as friends from one season no longer fit in the next. For parents, child-rearing progresses from the complete helplessness and dependency of an infant, through the increasing independence of childhood, adolescence, and adulthood, until one day grown children in turn provide care and support for their parents.

Life begins and ends slowly, with great reliance on the help of others.

New life alternates with loss and death.

We cannot fight against the seasonal nature of our lives any more than we can hold back the cold winds of winter or the downpours of spring. But every season offers both beauty and challenge. There is tremendous beauty in the fall, when trees release their leaves and nature enters a long-awaited rest. Then while harsh winter winds strip away the leaves that linger on the trees, beneath the ground seeds begin preparing to bring forth new life. The rains and mud of early spring give way to the lush, extravagant growth and fruitful harvest of the long, hot days of summer.

Perhaps most beautiful of all, we know that the difficulties of each season ultimately give way to the blessings of the next.

Questions to Consider:

What is your favorite season? Why?
What season do you most identify with in your life right now (Loss, rest, growth, or harvest)?
What is the beauty of this current season? What are the difficulties?