Tuesday, April 5, 2016

Seasons

Submitted by Sam Nobles
Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season... (2 Timothy 4:2a ESV)

In ministry and in service, you will inevitably go through various seasons...
·      There is the excitement of spring when you get new understandings from the Word and fresh insights into the Lord. Things blossom and bud; new growth abounds.
·      Spring leads to the fruitfulness of summer, when you start to see ministry opportunities open. The Lord uses your life and you say, ‘Wow! Fruit!’
·      Then comes fall when the Lord says, ‘There are some dead leaves that need to be knocked off.’ The winds blow, trials come, and you wonder what’s going on.
·      Fall is followed by winter—long periods where you feel nothing and hear very little from the Lord.

Early in my walk, not understanding the necessity of seasons, I used to freak out when winter came. ‘Oh, my,’ I thought, ‘I must be backsliding. I must be doing something terrible because I don’t feel the Lord’s presence or hear His voice.’ In reality, however, it was in the wintertime that the Lord was giving me the opportunity to walk by faith and not by feeling.

What are we to do during the wintertime seasons in our lives? Worship. Praise. Sing. Why? In the wintertime, we have the unique opportunity to worship the Lord without immediately receiving more than we give. I pray we would all learn to walk in this type of spiritual maturity.

Scripture to Claim:

For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: (Ecclesiastes 3:1 ESV)

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