Seasons

There once was a barber with a thriving business in a small Midwest town, when one day a large corporate salon moved in, set up shop across the street, and put up a huge banner that read, “We sell $3.00 haircuts.”

Well, it wasn’t long before the barber's business began to dwindle and suffer. Finally, after weeks of frustration, the barber hired a business consultant to come and evaluate the situation and offer whatever professional advice he could to save his business. After a quick evaluation of the situation the consultant makes a call and heads back to his car.

"Wait", said the barber, “Where are you going?” “I’ll be right back,” said the consultant. In a few minutes he returned with a huge banner that simply read, “WE FIX $3.00 HAIRCUTS.”

The ability to read a situation and respond correctly is more than luck, fate or being fortuitous. The Bible says it is a gift. Discernment is not a luxury we can afford to do without. Wisdom and discernment are blood brothers and the Bible makes it abundantly clear that God is the Father of both.

There were some men in the Old Testament who had a unique distinction that gained them certain notoriety in scripture. In 1 Chronicles 12:32 we are introduced to the Men of Issachar. The Bible says that these were men who understood the times and knew what Israel should do. This was of particular importance seeing that during these times eleven of the twelve tribes of Israel were without official leadership.

David was king of only one tribe for seven and a half years before the nation was united and during this time the men of Issachar played a significant role in the progress and care of the other eleven tribes. Please pay special attention to the fact that they understood the times.

Why is this so important and what relevance does it have to our walk with God? Well, God is a God of times and seasons. He created seasons as a way to process change in the earth.

In winter, there is a purging and a barrenness to all things that provides a necessary time of refocus and rest to the soil and land as frigid temperatures erase the landscape, making way for a new time and season.

In spring, there is planting, plowing and preparing. It is a time to work a plan and lay seeds of hope for a future return.

In summer, there is great growth and an abundant expansion as the seeds sown in spring are exposed to warm tropical air and summer showers that water and nourish the seeds to a lush green fullness.

In autumn, it is harvest. The time in which all the labor, patience and preparation finally pays off. As increase happens it brings with it a reflective moment where we realize…ALL OF THESE SEASONS WERE NECESSARY IN ORDER TO HAVE HARVEST NOW.

Every person reading this is in one of these seasons right now and your ability to discern and recognize which one can make the difference between pressing forward or pulling back. Now, I’m going to be straight with you, winter has gotten the best of me a few times.

We are taught to believe that if we walk by faith and honor God that our Christian experience should be comprised of all summers and autumns, but nothing could be farther from the truth. Listen, you can be in the dead of winter and be right in the middle of God’s perfect will for your life. I realized God took me through some winters to kill some things in me that needed to die before He could bring true harvest in my life.

Let me share two simple things about seasons you need to know that will help you as you walk with God.

1.- SEASONS ARE FAITHFUL- What I mean by that is, you can always count on them in the cycle of life. You will have many winters, springs, summers and autumns as you journey with God. The Apostle James said we should not be shocked as though some strange thing has happened to us. In other words, just count on it, it’s a normal part of God working in our lives.

2.- SEASONS ARE FRUITFUL- Every season is performing a vital function in your life. In spite of how difficult some seasons are they serve an invaluable purpose to make us what God wants us to be. After these years with God, I can honestly say I am thankful for my winters. Take any one of them away and I would not be half the leader He has helped me become.

Rest in the fact that God is at work in your life and it will help you hold on. Listen to this scripture in Galatians 6:9 Don’t ever become weary of doing what is right, at the proper TIME we will reap a harvest if we never give up.

Trust me when I tell you, there will be a TIME when you are due. And you will realize it was and is worth it all. As always there is a place to leave a comment, take a few seconds and share a thought about the seasons and what they mean to you.

Be blessed and I’ll catch you next week.

All for Christ,
J.Mark