The Seasons of Life

 It has been an unusual spring with cooler than normal temperatures going into the end of May. The seasons change. We are about to hit the dog days of summer with brutal heat. One lady described the wind blowing in the summer like sitting under a blow drier for an extended time. While we enjoy these cooler temperatures now, we know the temperatures will soon rise. While summer means vacations, the end of school, and water activities summer doesn't last forever. Sometimes it might seem that way if you have to work outside much. 

Eventually the summer will fade into fall. The temperatures will decrease with cool spells that blow into town. Soon the leaves will turn into those beautiful oranges, yellows, deep reds, and shades of burgundy. No matter how hard those leaves try to grip those limbs, the brisk autumn breezes will blow those leaves to the ground. The fall means football, homecoming, harvest, and Thanksgiving. 

Fall eventually fades into winter. Those dark bitter cold days of bone chilling icy cold weather are not fun to endear. Sure we celebrate Christmas and New Years Day, but the winter months are often as difficult to endure as the summer months. Outdoor activities are held to a minimal. Each Groundhogs Day we hope for an early spring.

The prize for enduring winter is spring. Where vegetation comes back to life. Flowers bloom. People go back outside as the weather warms. Spring is a happy time as students enjoy Spring Break and Christians celebrate the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. Spring also brings strong winds and the danger of wildfires. Even with those spring brings optimism. Wildflowers bloom as if buckets of paints have been poured from the sky onto the canvas of grass below. 

Just like there are different seasons, people endure different seasons of life as well. Spring represents when we are born. We grow as children and learn so much at this time. Summer is the early adult years. People may choose to enter the work force or pursue formal education. During this time of life many people fall in love and get married. People get established in their career. In the summer season children might be added to the family. Fall represents the middle aged years in life. Children grow up and graduate from high school. The body ages a little more. Joints ache, hair thins, greys, and wrinkles may appear. People come to grips that they are no longer young. Finally, people enter the winter season of life. This is the last stage on our earthly journey. During the winter years health may decline and people face their own mortality. This season is characterized between many doctor appointments and attending many funerals of family and friends. Eventually the end will come for all of us during this final season. 

I don't know where you are in the seasons of life. Each season brings its own joys. Brenda and I are definitely well into our fall years. Our four sons are grown and out of the house. The oldest is married and we anticipate the joy of grandchildren in the future. We are empty nesters enjoying time with just the two of us. We celebrate the times we get together as a family. 

Find the joys in the season you are living in. If you are in a tough season of life, know that those seasons do not last forever. Even in the winter of life there is the hope of heaven for those who embrace Jesus as Savior. There are joys to be discovered in each season of life. Look closely and you will find some. Treat each day as a gift rather than a drudgery. Just like each season gives way to the next, so will the circumstances you have to endure. Storms come and go. Better days are ahead, if not in this life, for Christians in the life to come.