Two living things, standing side by side. One appears bare, dull, worn.  The last handful of leaves are about to tumble.  It’s glistening moment has come and gone.

The other stands tall, gleaming with color that stops you in your tracks.  It’s a marvelous sight, so lively and secure.

They are close enough to reach out and touch, yet far-off in their process during this season of change.

Seasons of change are inevitable.  This time each year, we stand in awe of the luminosity surrounding us.   Next, we prepare to bunker down as the chill sweeps in and the color fades.  Then, our spirits are lifted as sunshine returns along with new buds of life.  Lastly, the tide rolls in heat and picnic days and vacations!  Just when we start to tire of one season, we are delighted as another comes for a visit.  We are blessed by this, you know.

But what about heart seasons?  The truth is…heart seasons are inevitable, too.  Do we, like the trees, embrace our purpose through seasons of change?  Or, are seasons of change unwelcome for us?  Do we, who are stripped bare and worn, give an envious glance at our neighbor who is glowing happy?  Or, do we attempt to stretch out an understanding limb?

Two souls, standing side by side. One, ripped open and poured out as she blogs the last days of her beloved’s battle with cancer.  Now, a single mother of 4 young kids. Another, mended and filling up again, as she stands in victory over the same dreadful disease.  Life looks different now, more rose-colored.

One, walks blissfully expectant down the isle toward her husband-to-be.  If it weren’t for the heavy dress, she’d be floating in ‘forever’. The other, fades further away as she struggles in her marriage of over a decade.  Crushed by the weight of uncertainty and scarred by a lifetime of not mattering.

One, rattled and tearful as her toddler tests the waters.  She lays awake at night worrying, “How will this little human being entrusted to ME turn out?”  Just breathe, they say it’s a phase.  Another,  full of peace and accomplishment as her virtuous daughter walks upright into her new dorm room, and into the world.  All those time-outs and nights spent on her knees has paid off.  Time to breathe (at least for this moment)!

One, finally able to say good-bye to that 8-5 job that kept her from her babies.  She finds that she still contributes.   In fact, her contribution is priceless: peace within her home. The other, jumping back into the workforce, excited to conquer the world.  They’ve missed her, and she’s missed the adult conversation.   She feels a stirring up of her creativity, something she thought she’d lost in the heaps of laundry and diapers.   It’s her time to shine.

Although very content in our sweet little cottage, just two mornings ago I was feeling antsy about finding a future house.  I began to cast my cares upon the Lord, when I heard him whisper to my soul, “I am going to give you a house, and you’re going to fill it up, and it won’t be easy.  So, enjoy this season of rest with your family.”  I quickly thanked Him for his provision and His instruction, as I was reminded that someday our desire to take kids into our home might just come to fruition.  Perhaps now IS a season of rest, and we need to savor it.

Seasons of change sweep through our lives, in every place.  Out in our yards, and inside our hearts.

No matter what season of change is whirling about, we can settle down knowing that one thing remains constant.  God.  His creation.  His love.  His faithfulness.  His mercies.  These things never change!  The Lord is the everlasting God, Creator of the ends of the earth.  He will not grow tired or weary, and His understanding no one can fathom (Isaiah 40:28).  He is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8).

When the world is turning upside down and hatred, greed, and selfishness seem to be magnified, His love is there to envelop us.  Neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:37-38).  For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations (Psalm 100.5).

No matter what season we are in, we can count on the sun coming up every single morning.  Our days may not be completely cloudless or without wind.  However, we can look forward to the sun’s imminent light and warmth.  We can also trust in a moon to inhabit the darkness.  If by chance the moon is just a sliver, there are a gazillion living stars hung in place as well.  If the cloud coverage is just too thick to see them, that doesn’t mean they aren’t there.  They are there.  God is there, standing connected to all He has created…even to the spinning seasons.