Thriving As Seasons Change

September 22, 2023

By: Holly Pentz, New Covenant Assembly of God, 1270 Pinchtown Rd, Montgomery, PA 17752

Well, as much as I have fought it, I have had to admit summer is officially over. It is not that I don’t like fall. In fact, I enjoy decking my house with shades of orange and brewing pumpkin spice! I like hoodies and hayrides and hot dogs over a firepit.

It is just that I enjoy summer so much more with its “jump in the pool” mentality, its “need no jacket” freedom and its “burgers on the grill” ease.   Some years, I try to ignore that fall is coming. We take late vacations, stretching summer into September. We keep the flip-flops out and spend time in the afternoon sun trying to retain our tans. And we keep the grill on the deck til the snow flies!

But inevitably, the seasons change. And so perhaps it is better to embrace them than to ignore them. And maybe this is true in life as well.  Life adjustments, just like the changing seasons, can change the thermostat of a household. Situations like kids going off to college, early retirement, an unplanned divorce, or an unexpected baby can leave us shivering, longing for that comfortable chaise lounge in the sun.

If life is changing a bit too fast for you right now, remember that God has set the seasons in motion in His time. Daniel 2:20-21a tells us: “Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever; wisdom and power are His. He changes times and seasons” (NIV). Your changes have not caught Him off-guard, and He will walk you through them.

And not only will He get you through, He can even help you to thrive within those seasons. Acts 14:17b says, “He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.”

This year, as the leaves change from green to orange, I think I will try to lean into a new season, instead of digging in my heels until the leaves fall down around me. I want to be like the tree mentioned in Psalm 1:3, which is planted by streams of water “which yields its fruit in season [ANY SEASON!] and whose leaf does not wither,” because the Scripture promises that “whatever they do prospers.” When my season gets scarey, I will remember His Word says in verse 6, “the Lord watches over the way of the righteous,” and I will continue to stand.

And the verse before, Psalm 1:2, tells me how both you and I can do that: “Delight…in the law of the Lord, and meditate on it day and night.” Might I add both summer and fall?

 

 

Posted in Footsteps To Follow