Seasons of Life

Read Ecclesiastes 3:1-13

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

A beautiful maple tree grows in our front yard. During the spring and summer, it provides much-needed shade. In the autumn, its beauty springs forth in bright colors. However, as the leaves change into beautiful colors, they also fall to the ground. On fall mornings I rake the leaves, but by afternoon the yard is covered in leaves again. Then during the winter, the tree endures the harsh weather. In spring, new growth emerges and the cycle starts all over.

Our lives follow cycles like the tree. God's Spirit helps us grow and mature. God uses the trials of life to make us wiser and complete. In our "autumns," God picks up the pieces of our shattered lives and makes something beautiful. In our "winters," God gives us the strength to endure even the harshest circumstances of life. And, in our "springs," God breathes new life into us.

God is with us during all the cycles of our life - to provide a refuge from life's trials and to equip us to do our best. And time after time when we stumble, God is there to gather us up, redirect our lives, and provide us with strength to meet life's challenges.

James L. Chappell (Kentucky, USA)

God strengthens us in all the seasons of our lives