I’ve lived in Central Florida for the longest now and what I’ve come to learn is that in Florida, we have two seasons, summer and hurricane. Yes, most Floridians will get their heavy coats out and wooly socks for the occasional cold fronts that come through but after a week of enduring the harsh conditions that sixty degree weather brings, it’s beach weather again and that means kicking back in our flip flops, and watching the sunset while we sip our sweet tea and sing Jimmy Buffett songs.  It’s rough I know but someone’s got to do it.  I don’t know what would happen to us if it actually snowed here.  The whole state would shut down.  News flash, this just in: “Snow is not made up of soap bubbles”.  Who knew? Wow! No, that can’t be true, must be fake news. But for the rest of us living outside of the land of citrus and Palm trees, each year consists of four seasons, with the winter season being the longest and the one most people dread. It can be hard to endure having to wake up to dark grey skies everyday, nature being pretty much buried in snow, nothing green or pretty to look at, ice and snow, trees all barren, did I mention snow? It’s pretty to look at but to shovel everyday, no thanks. If it wasn’t for money, I’m pretty sure most people would probably hibernate along with the bears and not leave their homes till spring. I’ve been thinking a lot about seasons, because God spoke to me last week about this. He reminded me that just like there are seasons that we go through in our weather patterns, we also go through seasons in our personal lives. I’m sure you’ve heard that before, and so have I. However, when you think about it, we can learn a lot about life through nature. Sometimes, God gives us a dream, a ministry, a calling in our lives and just like winter, instead of our plans blooming with promise, our dreams are like a barren tree, there’s no fruit, everything seems dead, no signs of life. Perhaps it’s a relationship that you are hoping for, a restoration in a marriage, a promise that God has given you that is showing no results and like a seed you feel stuck buried in the snow. I’ve got hope for us. Just like in nature, seasons do change. The summer sun will come out and melt the snow, the seeds do eventually grow and before you know it, there is life again. If that is what happens in nature why not with us? Remember, things take time. God could’ve made the world in one blink like a genie in a bottle but He didn’t. He took His time and created the world in six days. With Christmas around the corner, remember God could’ve saved the world in a second but instead He chose to send His child. Jesus had to grow up and be nurtured into a man so that He would eventually die on the cross, fulfilling Gods promise of salvation. But it took time, it didn’t happen overnight. Remember, God has His reasons for taking His time. When He does come through and our seasons change, it will have such an amazing impact on our lives and it will be for His glory. I think of the woman Anna from the Bible who was in her eighties. She used to visit the temple everyday and she did this for ten years straight praying earnestly for the coming Messiah, the one who would save her people from captivity. She did not waver in her season of barrenness and winter. She could’ve complained for she was alone and a widow but she didn’t, she waited on God for His promise and faithfully prayed believing God was going to answer her. Sure enough when Mary and Joseph presented Jesus to dedicate Him at the temple, Anna got the chance to finally see her dream come true. She got the chance to literally hold in her hands God’s plan for salvation. She was so overjoyed, her faith in God renewed even more. Her waiting was well worth the wait. You and I may be going through a season of barrenness where our dreams and our hopes seem dead buried in the snow. But take heart, if we keep our purpose before us, stay faithful in prayer, our season will change as well. God’s promise for us is like a tree. We start as a seed but in time it will sprout and grow. Just don’t give up when it takes too long, let God do His work in the waiting, winter will pass and one day we will see our tree.

Ecclesiastes 3:1

There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:

Luke 2:36-38 

36 There was also a prophet, Anna, the daughter of Penuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, 37 and then was a widow until she was eighty-four.[a] She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying. 38 Coming up to them at that very moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.