I can never decide on a favorite season. In the midst of whatever season we are currently in, I always decide it is my favorite season. I love fall because the leaves turn hot, deep, luminous colors. I love winter because of the way the snow decorates the barren branches. I love spring because there is a sense of hope in the green buds adorning the previously barren branches. I love summer because the trees are at their fullest and greenest.
There are also parts of the seasons I do not love. I don’t love the leaves once they are off the branches, soggy, and in need of being raked up. I don’t love the icy roads that can potentially result in the wrecking of my car. I don’t love the rain… that lasts for 3 months straight for those of us living in the northwestern region of the country.
Every season comes with its own set of blessings and “not-so-blessings.”
Life comes in seasons just like the world around us does. We have seasons of winter- death, depression, fear, and loneliness. We have seasons of spring- new life, growth, pruning, and expectations. We have seasons of summer- fullness, blooming, joy, calmness, and vibrancy. We have seasons of autumn- change, harvest, prosperity, and crunchiness (well not really, but who doesn’t go out of their way to step on a crunchy leaf?).
Just like Solomon reminds us, there is a season for everything. (Ecclesiastes 3)
As painful, long, and challenging a season may be, it is important to look for the beauty that comes in that season. Sometimes I sit at my window during spring and focus only on the fact that is has been raining for literally 78 hours nonstop. And how that means the bottoms of my pants are eternally wet. And how that means I am uncomfortable in every class. And how it makes me depressed.
And as I sit there thinking through this list of “I hates” about spring, I notice the magnolia tree bursting with countless buds waiting to bloom.
Maybe spring isn’t all that bad. Maybe there is a purpose to all this rain. Maybe if I took the time to realize how those buds came to be on that tree, I would find a new appreciation for my soggy pants.
The same is true for my life. The current season I am walking through is not the easiest. I find myself laying in bed thinking about how things are not turning out how I planned. And I begin to feel anxious, worried, angry, confused, and lost. But what if I took the time to realize what will come from this season?
Already in the midst of this season, I have seen God working. I have seen Him using this time to change me, grow me, and use me.
Seasons are a part of life and necessary for growth. A tree would never grow or even survive if it were not for the seasons. In the same way, we cannot grow without being put through seasons. As new seasons come, with their blessings and pain, try to see the good. Nothing happens outside of God’s will and we can rest assured that “in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).
