In every season…

Recently I was reading through verses of the day, and one verse that was mentioned was Ecclesiastes 3:1 which says, “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.”  We as people will often go through good, happy, and fruitful times, while we will also go through times of great strife, hardship, and frustration.  It is important that we can continue to find God’s purpose even amidst those seasons.  The season that you are in may not be the most perfect season.  It may not be the place that you exactly want to be in, but it has a reason.  The Lord has something that he wants to teach you, and he wants you to grow in fruits of the spirit, so that way you can grow fruit all over the world.  He also wants to bless you, even if these are the moments when you feel very far away from blessings.  But how can we choose to see goodness even amidst those hardships?  

This past year, my word of the year has been joy, and I have tried to stay focused on something joyful that happens every day.  I have learned that when I look at something joyful everyday, I can continue to find joy in every season.   This is not always the easiest.  For example, I don’t enjoy winter.  I don’t love the cold weather.  I don’t like that the sun is down for longer periods of time throughout the day.  I don’t like that I can’t run or bike outside as much either.  However, even I have to admit that there are many beautiful things that can come out of the months that winter presides in.  Hot chocolate and other hot drinks can easily be enjoyed by a vast majority in the winter months, and often this is the season when I go to more basketball games that my students participate in.  Of course, this example was more about the actual season of winter.  When in reality, the verse is talking about seasons of life.  

 I am currently a teacher.  However, I have also had many dreams of becoming a writer and writing a novel or to work at a nonprofit.  There are many times that I can sometimes feel as though I am not in the position that I am supposed to be.  Maybe there is someone also reading who doesn’t know if they are in the right position or the right job.  Many others can also struggle with the area that they are in life when it comes to whether or not they are single or married.  I am currently single, but I can start to wonder whether or not I am going to be single forever.  When we start to become unsure if we are in the right position or whether we are in the right relationship/no relationship, the Devil or the evil one then does an extra good job about making us feel even worse about that season we are in.  

My challenge for each and every one of you right now is to think about the place that you are in, and then list three incredible blessings that come out of this season of your life.  This can be written in a journal or in the notes section of your phone.  What season are you in?  Are you a student or are you in the job world?  Are you married or single?  Are you living in a small town or are you in a large city?  Depending on the major life situation/season you are in, what are three blessings that come out of that.  I say that you should write these down, so that way you can have a reminder of the blessings and the good things that can come out of each season, even if you are not necessarily in the season that you want to be in.  

Right now, using the example that I have already mentioned: I am a teacher.  This has been a major blessing in my life because I am growing all the time in my leadership skills.  I am leading people who are younger than me, yes, but I am still in many ways leading young adults.  It is a lot of work to be able to lead people, especially all day.  I need to be creative in my lesson planning and how I teach in order to lead and teach my students better.  Another blessing is that it has taught me is, to stay on top of my work.  I know that I need to make sure I grade on a regular basis, so that I will not fall behind and students will not have grades.  Lastly, it has taught me/is teaching me on a regular basis how to have more compassion and patience with the students that I am teaching.  This is something that I am still working on, and I probably will be for the rest of my life.  But, I would not be as strong in this if I wasn’t working as a teacher.  

I pray that this exercise will help you realize what the Lord is trying to teach you during this season of your life.  I pray that you realize you are growing and that you are being blessed by the Lord, even when it can feel as though he is the farthest away that he can possibly be.  I hope the writing of the blessings down serves as a reminder to see joy in all circumstances.