Ecclesiastes 3:1-2 "For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven. A time to be born and a time to die. A time to plant and a time to harvest."
I've been thinking a lot the past few days about seasons. Some times it feels like life and progress are going SO slow, but then there are other seasons that just seem non-stop! There are seasons that we cherish and hope never end, and others that we wish were over with or hadn't even happened in the first place. I thought of how different most of our lives are compared to even a year ago! Not even a year ago I was wondering if God was ever going to send someone into my life, fast forward to today, I'll be getting married in less than a month! Life and circumstances can change so fast for us, but it's not always in a way we think is best. But in EVERY season the key is to trust in the Lord!
Jeremiah 17:7-8 "But blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him. He is like a tree planted by the waters that sends out it's roots toward the stream. It does not fear when the heat comes, and it's leaves are always green. It does not worry in a year of drought, nor does it cease to produce fruit."
Our trust in the Lord is what provides strength to continue in any and every season of life! Our trust in the Lord is how, through seasons of drought, our leaves stay green. It's not just an outward appearance or a show we put on to make it seem like life is all roses in hardship. It is an inward joy from the Lord that all of my life is in His hands, and He is where all I need is provided, He is my help and strength in times of need! Our trust in the Lord is what helps us to produce fruit in every season! If my trust is in God it's easier for me to love when I might be hated for it, to serve when I don't seem appreciated by people, to give when there isn't plenty, to go where it seems impossible. So the enemy will always try to attack your trust in the Lord! He will try to make you weary and think that somehow God has forgotten about you. He will try to make you think that you have to do everything on your own.
I think of Jesus, the Son of God, even He was tempted, even He prayed for the Father to let this cup pass from Him when He knew His time had come. But He saw past the pain that was coming His way and said "you're will be done, not mine"! Jesus's trust was in God even when He cried out "Father why have you forsaken me"! Through His trust in the Father, we have salvation! We have new life, we have all we need in a relationship with the Father. So be encouraged that the same God who raised Him from the dead lives inside of us! He will guide us through every season. He will give us strength. If through Jesus's hardest season, we have salvation, I think God can use us to bring life to others in our hardest seasons. So let's not focus on what wears us down, making us unfruitful, let's be a tree planted by the stream that trusts in the Lord and will be fruitful in every situation!
Be blessed this week Church family!