Changing of the Seasons
8:57 AMHeatherHere in Texas, I find myself melting by about mid-July. It is so hot that I cannot imagine ever feeling cool again. I am repulsed by photos of heavy coats or sweaters. The warm weather isn't so bad in May. But it gets old pretty quick. I find myself bumming off friends with pools regularly come July or August. Our electric bills skyrocket as we crank down the air conditioning attempting to escape the heat. My kids often hear me yell, "Close that door! You're letting the hot air in!" We just suffer through the heat because that's what you do. And, although you know someday, the heat will end, it's hard to imagine. No matter how many Texas summers you've endured.
Life is much like that, isn't it? We find ourselves sweating in the heat of our circumstances. No relief in sight. You fan yourself and do what you can to cool down. But, you just can't ignore the fact that it's a miserable season. You wish you could go on about your days without being affected by the heat oppressing you. But you can't. It feels unbearable. You're exhausted, worn out, and weary beyond belief.
Maybe your season of misery is the tough times of mothering, isolated from other adults, repeatedly changing diapers, filling sippy cups, and barking orders. Or, a tough season in your marriage. And, it feels as though all hope for happiness is gone. Maybe you're enduring a health crisis, financial crisis, or job problems. With no end in sight. Maybe you battle loneliness or depression or anxiety. And, every day feels as hot and miserable as the day before. The forecast looks like just more of the same.
Life is full of such seasons. And that's what they are. Seasons. While we Texans don't have four complete seasons, we do indeed have seasons. Even if they are just hot and not as hot. And, life is like that. It's hard. And then not so hard. Because just when you think you cannot take another day of the heat, sitting in the fiery trials, the winds of change will blow softly. So subtle at first that you may not notice it. And, then one day, you may realize that for several days in a row, you didn't feel quite so miserable. Here in Texas, we get "cold fronts" in September and October where the temperature can even drop thirty degrees. Boy, don't we enjoy those respites. It strengthens our resolve for the return to higher temperatures. And, then we realize we've seen our last 100 degree day for a good long while.
Glimpse of GRACE: I have friends in many hard seasons in life. Infertility. Marital struggles. Children with cancer. Teenagers and young adults making poor choices. The heat has been turned up, and it's unbearable. I love how Priscilla Shirer described these valley times that the Israelites faced during their 40 years in the wilderness. She made the point that a valley is made by mountains on each side. In our valleys, all we see is that we are laid low, beaten down, weary and exhausted. But, the truth is that mountains lie ahead and around. The season will change. Eventually. That "meantime" is the trial, indeed. Despair is a hard road to walk, the toughest season to endure. I don't mean to sound trite here. I've walked some long "meantimes" in my life. Some may never end this side of heaven. Trust me. I've endured some valleys where my life was unraveling and no mountain was in sight. No change of seasons seemed imminent.
But, can I remind you--as a fellow traveler--that seasons do change.
"Even in the meantime God was still dreaming about our lives. God is still busy."
--Michael Kelley
Wednesdays Were Pretty Normal
Please, dear bloggy friend, as you endure your season, trust this truth. Seasons will change. The heat will die down. The cool breeze of relief will come. And, all the while that you wait with great longing for that, can you choose to believe that while you wait--God is busy? Today, I pray that you will tie this knot at the end of your rope. Ask God for a cool breeze of respite in the middle of your fiery trial. Enough relief to press on. And, press in to the One who walks along side you.
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