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As the seasons begin to make an ever so subtle shift, I've noticed the change in our garden. Flowers that once thrived in partial sun are now burning up in full afternoon heat. Likewise, plants that crave the heat are now shrinking back in their lack of sun. The change doesn't happen all at once of course, but little by little, day by day.
Our lives mirror this same thing. Seasons of life change, focuses shift and God veers our lives into new directions with new opportunities, new relationships and renewed purposes. But unlike me, the seasons don’t resist the change!
Summer slowly surrenders to autumn and I am reminded that there is breathtaking beauty in the shifting; purpose IN the change. It's not that summer was insignificant, but that it's moments have been well spent and NOW it's time to move forward into the next season.
Such it is in my life.
“Do not call to mind the former things, or ponder things of the past. Behold, I will do something new, now it will spring forth; will you not be aware of it? I will even make a roadway in the wilderness, rivers in the desert.” Isaiah 43:18 - 19 (NASB)
What if God created the changes of season so that we would recognize He is ever doing something new, especially in our own lives? That He wants us to move forward instead of stay still - or even ponder the things of the past?
I don’t know about y’all, but change is SO hard for me! I desire control - I just got used to how things ARE and now God decides to shift and stretch me once again? But God allows this change because we were meant for more than comfort. Our lives will ever be refined so that we can become more and more like Jesus with each passing day.
So what if I started to embrace the shifting, recognizing the beauty in time well spent? What if I stopped fearing change and wondering what went wrong to cause it? Maybe I would see beauty in the process instead of all I am losing. Maybe I would then recognize more of God in every turn instead of hurt and pain in the change.
Life is made up of exquisite seasons, friends, adding dimension and interest to every corner but we have to look for it. When we spend the bulk of our time fighting the season, we miss all of that beauty!
May we see the loveliness in ALL seasons of our life today, recognizing purpose even amidst the subtle shifting. May we resist the desire to hold on tight to what WAS instead of moving forward into what IS. Change is good my friends!