Changing Seasons

Do you enjoy the changing seasons?  I have always lived somewhere in which the change of seasons becomes obvious in the changing color of leaves or the budding of flowers.  I definitely enjoy the warmer temperatures of the south, but I am thankful that I still live somewhere I can watch the seasons change.  The seasons of our lives change as well.  Major milestones, often good, can have a profound impact on our lives and change who we are.  We are told in Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8

For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:

a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;

a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;

a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;

a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away;

a time to tear, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;

a time to love, and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace.

As we change seasons this autumn, I find myself evaluating my year and shifting priorities.  Prior to my youngest son’s birth, I was writing every week.  While I have enjoyed writing again, I like the limit of just one post per month.  In this season of life, I don’t have the time or energy for more than that.  I have also dropped some time on social media in favor of more time with my family.  I am trying to be more present in each moment with my kids, which may mean fewer pictures to share.  I am going for more memories and less social media interaction.

I recently heard the question from a young mom, how do you do it all?  How can you love your husband, care for your children, care for your home, bake your own bread, make homemade meals, etc?  The answer is, you can't.  Yes, there are some women who are blessed with what seems like superhuman time management and energy who do it all.  However, most of us have to embrace the season in which we live and move away from some things to make room for others.  Mothers of nursing infants spend a lot of time just caring for children, especially if they have older children to care for while they are nursing a baby.  Older children may need to embrace a season of helping more around the house.

I would challenge older women to consider their seasons of life.  If all of your children are grown and grandchildren are on the way, seek ways to help not only your children but others in your church as well.  I know too many senior saints who take the mentality of having already "put in their time" and who have checked out of service to their church in their senior years.  We need your help!  We need your wisdom and experience!  Be the person you needed when you were a young mom struggling to keep up!

Many single adults feel like there is no place for them in a church.  There are plenty of young families that would appreciate your friendship and your help, especially if they have multiple young children.  If you desire marriage, this is a great way to learn the roles of husbands and wives and to see how they are raising their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.  Maybe you are single and desire to stay so; Paul calls this an honorable thing.  You may be called to help in areas where others with children do not have the time to serve.  Seek out the wisdom of the widows in your church.  Not only would you learn a great deal from the wisdom and experience they have to offer, but you can also offer them help and companionship as they face life alone. 

The church has been called not only to share the gospel but also to build up one another in the faith.  Everyone is uniquely gifted to serve their church.  Different gifts and abilities may be called on in different seasons of life.  Your role will shift and change as you go through life.  Embrace each season as it comes.  Do not feel guilty for stepping away from volunteering to serve your family better.  Likewise, step up and serve when time affords you the opportunity so others are not left feeling as if they are the only ones who can serve.  "And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds, and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.  Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love." (‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭4:11‭-‬16‬)