There Are Seasons for Everything
“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.”
“‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’”
One of the greatest debates of our time is when to start playing Christmas music. Some people like to start before Halloween and enjoy almost three months of a Christmassy season. To some people that ridiculous and Christmas music isn’t allowed to start until November. Still others find any Christmas music before December 1st to be absolutely intolerable!
In essence, it’s a debate of seasons. At what point does the Christmas season start? Where is the window for Thanksgiving? How do people that don’t celebrate Halloween navigate this weirdness when they are really excited about Christmas but don’t want to step on any toes?
These seasons are a bit different for everybody. Some people need each holiday confined to its particular month with no touching or overlap. Some people are obsessed with one holiday and throw all of their time and energy into decorating for it particularly. Some people don’t really care about any of them but look forward to very delicious meals around all three (we’ll count Halloween candy as a meal for the sake of completion).
Just like holiday seasons, seasons in nature, and seasons of a favorite TV show, our lives have seasons. Sometimes it's a season of celebration (graduation, promotion, marriage, or welcoming a new member to the family) and sometimes it's a season of mourning (death, unemployment, breakup, disaster, trauma).
Our talents, abilities, and creative passions go through similar seasons. Sometimes we have the freedom, time, and energy to get project after project done. Sometimes we are burnt out, needing rest, and dragging our feet, even with the things we love to do. Sometimes things are just…going. Nothing major bad, nothing major good happening, just plowing along. All of these seasons are a natural part of life and being a creative!
Sometimes God calls us to take a step back, take our hands completely off of something, and focus on something else. That can be the most difficult, because it requires us to completely and totally trust in Him, not in how we’ve planned out our lives.
It is okay to mourn the changing of the seasons, it is okay to be a bit nervous about what is new and to miss a season once it is over but use the opportunity to trust God. His plans for you are good and honorable!
Putting it into Action: take a moment to reflect on your life and try to identify the seasons in it. The hard times, the good times, the in-between times. What do you notice about these? Have the hard times turned out well? Have the good times eventually come to an end? Whatever these seasons, praise the Lord for His good plans for you; be diligent in listening to His prompts, don’t resent Him for the difficulties, and don’t forget to honor Him in the joys!
