Enjoying All Seasons

HIGHLIGHT: Ecclesiastes 3:1, 11 There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens...He has made everything beautiful in its time.

EXPLAIN: The writer (teacher) reminds the student that there is a time for everything. Everything we experience and go through has its moments of existence. This includes things such as: birth and death, planting and harvesting, tearing down and building up, crying and laughter, silence and speaking and so much more.

In this instruction, we are reminded that seasons are a set time. They do not go on forever with no end in sight. Seasons change, and so do life's circumstances. The teacher may have said it this way: the only constant in life is change.

In verse 11, the teacher also says that God has made everything beautiful in its own time. This sounds poetic, but it is a reminder that each season ~ good or bad, beautiful or ugly ~ will have its purpose and there is beauty in the process and journey. Growth happens in the good and the bad.

APPLY: Working at a church means that we see stages of life. Birth, nursery, toddler, pre-K, Elementary, Middle School, High School, College, Singles, Young Adult, Married, Married with Children, Married with teenagers, Empty Nesters, Retirement, JOY (Just Older Youth), Death. These are not all inclusive, but they are easily seen from where I sit.

There are moments where we are frustrated in each stage of life: I wasn't expecting a baby right now, I wish they would sit quietly at the restaurant, my teenager continually rolls their eyes, Where are they going in life after college and so on. How often has a young parent, or even the parent of a teenager, asked, "How long will this last?" Only to hear a more seasoned parent, "This to shall pass."

When Tina and I were getting ready to have our first child, there were several who spoke wisdom into our lives. One piece was, "enjoy every season, because it will be gone before you know it." This meant for us to realize that life would change. Eventually there would be no diapers. The second piece of advice was, "take them with you wherever you go, making them part of your life." Once again, the idea was not to miss out on doing life with them. Bringing them with us from the start became their normal. Honestly, I am thankful for these two bits of advice above all others when it comes to raising kids.

Tina and I are in a new season. The house is a little quieter, and honestly I don't get near as upset with our kids these days. Why? Because God has made everything beautiful in its own time. These days, I enjoy watching them, listening to them and cheering them on.

I am also learning to enjoy the seasons of my job. There are good days, better days and a few rough days sprinkled in. Either way, resting in God's strength and peace reminds me to be thankful in the good for the blessings in my life. It also reminds me in the rough times that this is only a season, and it too will pass.

RESPONSE: Jesus, thanks for your work in my life ~ in all areas. May I never be so short-sighted that I forget that each moment contains a beauty inside of it. May I trust you to reveal that beauty to me in your own time.