Seasons

Seasons
“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.” -Ecclesiastes 3:1

 We are entering summer here on the Gulf Coast. The grass is green, the weather is heating up, and the kids are getting out of school. Just as our world has seasons, so do our lives. Ecclesiastes 3 says: “for everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.” God’s creation and God’s Word are teaching us something very valuable. Here are three things we ought to learn about seasons in life:

1) Seasons Tell Us What To Do: Ecclesiastes 3:2 says there is “a time to be born and a time to die; a time to plant and a time to pluck up what is planted.” Spring is the season for birth. It is the season for planting. For farmers, spring brings a to do list with it. When we know what season of life we’re in, that knowledge helps us know what we should do on a day in and day out basis. Seasons tell us what to do.

2) Seasons Tell Us What Not To Do: On the other hand, Ecclesiastes 3:5 says there is “a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing.” It is right to embrace in a season of grief – perhaps at the funeral of a loved one. But it is untimely and unseasonable to embrace someone who has just betrayed you. Seasons not only tell us what to do, they also tell us what not to do.

3) Seasons Change: Ecclesiastes 3:4 says there is “a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance.” As you read through this Chapter, you will notice a rhythm to the words just as there is a rhythm to the seasons of the year. That back and forth rhythm teaches us that seasons change. Change is in their very nature. So if you are in a season of life that you aren’t particularly enjoying, you can rest assured that seasons change. It is not always time to mourn – the time to dance will come.

Whatever season of life you are in right now, I want you to know that I am praying for you and I am here to help in any way I can.

Your Pastor and Friend,
John Knox Foster