Learning to embrace seasons of change
The Fall season is my favorite time of year, and always has been. Even as a child and teenager growing up in Newfoundland, I fondly remember the beautiful colors of the season, spending time in the country with my dad, picking berries, harvesting the crops at the Clarke family farm, and getting up early in the morning to go hunting (I’m not much of a hunter any more).
Breathing in the cool, fresh, and crisp morning air had a way of giving me life and inspired me to go outside, get involved, begin new things, and embrace the fullness of the season.
I’m a student. And, probably always will be. I love to learn new things, reflect on older ideas, and spend time discussing them with others.
I also love to read, write, and blog about my ideas, in the hopes that someone else will find something in the words and sentences I write that will inspire them to think about things anew.
New…that’s an interesting word isn’t it? It can be used to describe a car, home, baby, family member, book, coffee shop, and a host of other things.
For the most part, we like new and fresh things. Who doesn’t enjoy wearing a new item of clothing? Driving a new car? Buying a new home? Or, on a less materialistic note, what about new friendships? New love? New additions to the family? The list can go on and on.
However, while we often embrace the new, it can also sometimes cause us to experience disarray, disorientation, and even despair.
There are some things in life we would just rather leave alone. Old habits, rituals, and methods can sometimes become ingrained. And so, we resist change, even if the change in question can bring with it newness of life.
Change happens...with or without me
If I’ve learned anything at all in my life so far it is that change happens whether I want it to or not. Sometimes I embrace it, other times I don’t; at least not for a while anyway.
However, I often wonder what I may have missed during those moments when I chose to resist the change before me?
What opportunities did I let slip through my fingers?
What plans did God have for me there, plans that I never saw actualized, because of my resistance?
Singer-Songwriter, David Phelps, once penned these words, “Change is never easy, but it’s just a part of living.”
Isn’t that true? I’ve experienced this reality over and over again in virtually every sphere of life. Change just happens – with or without me.
Learning to step into change
I’ve learned along the way that while somethings may have been better left alone, other changes brought with it positive results. Over and over again, I’ve had to learn to step out in faith, trust God, and just jump. Not blindly, but with confidence in God’s grace, power and wisdom.
And you know what? God has been there. Even if I moved in a wrong direction, God’s loving presence led me through the wrong direction. Wherever we are, God will be there before us, guiding us, loving us, sustaining us, and providing for us through the change.
So, I invite you to reflect on the word ‘change’. Think about what God is going to do in this new season of life and ask him to enable you to be a part of it.
Learn to live in the newness of the dawning season, embrace the changes, and give God thanks that He is with you through it all.
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