For everything there is a season. A time for every purpose under heaven. Ecclesiastes 3:1
I love plants and I’m privileged to have a rather spacious garden in my house. A few years ago I planted some small coconut trees there, and I realize that I must wait for them to grow big and be fruitful.
As Christians, we often think that we should be at harvest season all the time. That’s why if we are not careful, we might give up easily when the going gets tough.
There are four seasons in life.
– The Sowing season
– The Watering season
– The Waiting season
– The Harvest season
We should see each season as special. For God has His good purpose of allowing us to be in each one of them.
The Sowing Season
Genesis 26:1 says that Isaac sowed in times of famine. Famine talks about many things in our lives. It may literally mean hunger, or for some people it means being sick, or struggling with finances, or having relationship issues, And many other challenges we may be going through.
But God teaches us to sow in times of trouble.
In 1 Kings 17:10-16, Elijah told the widow of Zarepath to sow by asking her to make food for him even though her resources were running real low. Ruth sowed good seeds by giving herself to accompany Naomi in her journey. The boy who gave up his 5 loaves of bread and 2 fishes, sowed so that Jesus could perform a miracle by feeding over 5000 people with 12 baskets of leftovers
Sowing season is a good season because it is a time we can use to live unselfishly and the bible promises that we will reap what we sow. As in the case of the widow of Zarepath, Ruth, and the boy who gave up his lunch, we can see that each one reaped good things.
The Watering Season
A while back I planted some trees at an empty lawn behind my office. They were just about 50 centimeters tall. And I planted them right in the summer time. It hadn’t rained for months and the sun was extremely hot. It was clearly not the best time to plant. But I had my mind set on planting. I knew I would have to give extra water if I wanted to see the trees grow. So I got the gardener to water the trees 2-3 times a day. And you know what, about a year later, the trees grew to about 5 meters tall.
Don’t get discouraged if you are in this season. It indeed needs perseverance to keep watering certain situations. Perhaps you are currently evangelizing to your friend or a family member. Or perhaps you are currently trying to work on a relationship. Whatever it is, be encouraged to know that your efforts will not go in vain.
The Waiting Season
This is probably the most difficult of all seasons. It often feels the longest. Habakkuk grew weary while waiting for change. He even questioned God for letting bad things happen. We all have questions about why certain things happen and why certain things don’t. And nobody likes to wait.
I read of this story about a man who was watching a caterpillar trying to break free from its egg shell. The caterpillar was struggling and waiting to break free. This man had an idea. He wanted to help ease the process, so he took a scissor and carefully cut a hole so that the caterpillar could get out with ease. Indeed it did. It saved a lot of energy and time. The man seemed to have done the soon to be butterfly a favor. But as he pay attention to the caterpillar turning into this beautiful butterfly, he found out that the butterfly was unable to fly as it was supposed to. It was just walking around. Apparently, a caterpillar needs to struggle and wait to break free from its egg shell to build the muscles it needs on its wings in order for it to be able to fly when it becomes a butterfly.
You see, waiting can be a very painful process, but it is very important in shaping us to be the person that God intends us to be.
What is it that you are waiting for? Is it a child that you’ve been dreaming of, of a loving spouse that you’ve been praying for, or whatever it may be, know that your season of waiting is an important part of your life. If you allow God to work in your situation, you will see that He will use your time of waiting as a valuable time of learning His will.
The Harvest Season
God is the author and finisher of our faith. He always has a harvest prepared for His children. A Christian man who came to my counseling practice asked me if there is hope for his condition. I said there is always hope for those who are in Christ.
I heard of a story of a lady who’s been praying for a soul mate. One day after work, in the middle of driving home, she found out that she had flat tire on her car. So she pulled over to the side of the road not knowing what to do because she has no idea how to change a tire. A few minutes went by when suddenly a gentleman pulled over and offered her help. She gladly accepted and the man changed her tire for her. They then got to know one another and to make a long story short, they ended up marrying each other the year after. That was God at work answering the lady’s prayer in her harvest season. Just imagine if the man had left earlier from where it is he was leaving from. Or if he had changed his mind about which route to take. He may never have met his future wife. It was harvest seasons for them both.
Even if you think you will never see harvest in your condition, you can learn to trust God. He knows every bit of your life. And he works in all things to bring good to those who love Him.
Whatever season you may be in right now, I pray that you keep staying in faith. Keep a thankful heart and make the best of every season in your life. Always be hopeful because harvest season is always just around the corner.
He loves you & always has the best in mind for you.