“This Too Shall Pass”

“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven…”— Ecclesiastes 3:1

Ha ha.

Nature has played a cruel April joke on us. Today it is 10 degrees outside and snow storms rolled through this past weekend and all day yesterday. We got 5-6 inches yesterday on top of what we already had. Snow weighs down the tree boughs, covers the streets, is pushed in big drifts by the snow plows, and cars slip on the roads. It literally looks like Christmas time.

Outside, the robins in my crab apple tree plump themselves up to twice their size and eat the dried frozen berries. They must be thinking—“When will winter end? We didn’t sign up for this.” My thoughts exactly. I don’t want it to look like Christmas, I want it to look like spring, with green grass and buds on the trees and birds building nests. I want the breeze to be warm, the air to be sweet (or at least smell like spring), and the flowers to peep out of the ground. I want to get out of my winter sweaters and put away the flannel sheets. I want the season to change.

Such is life. And isn’t that exactly like life? Sometimes we find ourselves in seasons of life that we don’t like and they seem to last forever and we want them to change. Medical issues, relationship changes, rocky job situations, or just plain boredom can be some of the seasons we walk through. How about you? What type of season are you going through right now that you wish would pass quickly?

Abe Lincoln, once said in a speech, “This too shall pass.” I remember these words and those of King Solomon (above) when I am in a testy season of life. God uses all seasons for our growth and His glory, but we often don’t see that. We wallow in the circumstances and fail to look up to God.

Seasons enlighten us. Seasons toughen us. Seasons build faith and character and endurance. They often bring us closer to God. The tougher they are, the more growth potential. And what’s the point of living if we aren’t growing?

Lean into whatever season God is calling you to today. Look to Him, accept His grace and comfort, and ride it out. This too shall pass, and in due time, you can look back at that season, see how you’ve grown, and know that God was in the midst of it all.

Prayer—“Gracious God, help me to accept the season to which you have called me. Open my eyes to You and the potential of growth, no matter where I find myself. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.”