I’ve been thinking about changing seasons. I’m starting to see signs of autumn coming. The mornings are cool and the leaves are changing color. I’m ready for summer to be done and I’m looking forward to the change of season. But summer is still trying to hold on, with temperatures in the upper 70s and low 80s, unusually warm for October in my part of the world.
As much as I’m ready for fall, I can’t do anything to make it come faster. God has control of the seasons and rhythms of life.
For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: - Ecclesiastes 3:1 ESV
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 tells us that God has a plan and a time for everything. This reminds me of two ways I can stubbornly try to put my plans for my life above God’s.
I can hold on too tightly to the seasons of life, resisting change even when it’s good. Sometimes it’s because I’m very comfortable where I am; sometimes it’s because I’m feeling inadequate for whatever challenges I see coming. Regardless of the reason, when I hold onto things too tightly and am unwilling to move forward, I’m telling God that I don’t trust in His sovereignty and His goodness.
Ouch.
And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. - Romans 8:28 ESV
The other thing I can do is get impatient and run ahead of the Lord. I think that I understand what’s needed to solve some issue, but I don’t stop and talk to Him before doing something. Or I think I’ve waited long enough for God to do something and take matters into my own hands, like Sarai did when she wanted a child so badly (Genesis 16:1-6). I’m not aware of these thoughts when I run ahead of Jesus, but that’s what my actions show. Another way to tell God that I’m really trusting Him.
Ouch, again.
So, what do I do to avoid either of these scenarios?
I stick close to Jesus through prayer and Scripture. I intentionally choose to wait on Him and not listen to worldly advice that encourages me to do my own thing. I choose to live differently than those who do not have Jesus, obeying Him and submitting to His authority. I choose to trust that His plans are better than mine and that He has good things in store for me in due time. Not always easy, but well worth the effort.
Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.
He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. - Psalm 1:1-3 ESV
Think About: How are you trusting God in your season of life?
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