Tag: seasons

The Cold Sets In

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The Cold Sets In

Its so wonderful that we are reminded of the perpetuation of life through the seasons on this planet. It’s such a beautiful reminder that life will be a natural cycle, that seasons of cold winters of death, and long periods of struggles will ensue.

As I woke up this morning and found the first frost on my window I am reminded of the scripture that shows us there are many seasons and we must live through them all. Nature is not just something we experience as far as weather, but it symbolizes our own lives. While where I live is entering winter, in my own life I am in spring, the birth of something wonderful, the growth, the warmth of new life, new buds, sunshine, and all the sensations that go with it.

I was in the winter so long I had forgotten what the warmth felt like. I wasn’t sure my path would ever lead me to feel this way again. I trusted in God to show me the way, but I didn’t know if His way would be to grant me love again. Have we ever asked ourselves what we did wrong, or why we were being punished? I often asked God what I was doing to continue being punished for my transgressions. I often asked God what I had to do to change the path and lead me out of the darkest winter. I don’t think I was asking the right questions over the last two years. While it seems my prayers were answered, I learned I need to be specific with my prayers because we don’t always get what we thought we wanted. While God’s blessings, and gifts to us are far better then anything we could have ever dreamt up on our own, and I am beyond happy with who God has put into my life. The catch, I needed to focus on me, I needed to focus on my walk with the Lord, before I could be something for anyone else. I needed to be okay on my own before I could stand with anyone else. I wasn’t asking what I could learn, or how I could grow, I was insistent that someone is what I needed in my life. I was certain that a person would fix me, and the truth is a person cannot fix you, only Jesus can do that. Sure a person can be a band-aid for you, but eventually that will fall off revealing the original wound, that’s not festered, and become so much worse. The cold in my heart was the season needed at the time, and I wasn’t granted the quick fix for it. I was forced to go through the entire healing process, and now, when the time was right, God granted my prayer, albeit complicated, the future is bright and warm.

We cannot rush God because the shortcuts we would take would only cause disaster. I think about the Wrath of Kahn and the Genesis planet. In the next film The Search For Spock David used an unstable compound, which was causing the planet to collapse. David used something as a shortcut because he couldn’t solve the problem. If we rush the process, and we don’t allow the time needed to get things right, our worlds will collapse and destroy themselves also. I don’t know why God sent me someone who lives so far away, but I trust in the Lord, and as I get to know her, I find how amazing she is, and how wonderful we will be together. No matter the distance God will give us what we need, and God will find a way. We must have faith in that process, and not rush it. I know that I am in a season of spring in my life, as I watch the natural world enter the season of winter. I ask you all what season are you in? How long have you been in those seasons? We must take time to ask God for guidance, and understand if we are in an extended season, a negative season, we need to ask what we are to learn, what are we being prepared for, but most importantly, ask how you can glorify the holy name of Jesus Christ in your season.

Trust in your God, and believe that He knows the perfect route for you to take, and do not lean on your own understand, nor should you follow your own path, because I can promise with all certainty your path is not better then that God would have you walk. Do not think you know more then God because you will find out the hard way you don’t. Trust that seasons are a part of life, and follow the teachings in Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

To everything there is a season,

A time for every purpose under heaven:

2 A time [a]to be born,

And a time to die;

A time to plant,

And a time to pluck what is planted;

3 A time to kill,

And a time to heal;

A time to break down,

And a time to build up;

4 A time to weep,

And a time to laugh;

A time to mourn,

And a time to dance;

5 A time to cast away stones,

And a time to gather stones;

A time to embrace,

And a time to refrain from embracing;

6 A time to gain,

And a time to lose;

A time to keep,

And a time to throw away;

7 A time to tear,

And a time to sew;

A time to keep silence,

And a time to speak;

8 A time to love,

And a time to hate;

A time of war,

And a time of peace.

Winter can be a beautiful time in your life if you allow yourself to take a step back to see it. While the trees look dead, and the grass is brown, and it’s often gloomy overhead, I have also seen some of the most beautiful snowfalls, the decorations for Thanksgiving, and most importantly the decorations for our savior’s birth. How wonderful the season of winter is and even if it feels cold, and lonely sometimes, you can turn to God and grow and trust that the cold will break, and tomorrow change will be in the air. 

Hope Always

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Hope Always

The life we live can be full of never any changes. I heard in a sermon recently where it was said after something big happens “the world will never be the same.” While this is hitting the nail on the head it’s important to remember that at some point our season will change, and we will be faced with tough choices. We cannot go through life surprised that the seasons change without warning. We cannot let those changes put a wedge between our Father and us. There’s one thing we must always remember and that’s God is still on the throne, God’s still in control, and we must understand that our prayers are always heard, and answered, even if we don’t see or understand the answer.

Ecclesiastes 3 (NKJV)

Everything Has Its Time

3 To everything there is a season,

A time for every purpose under heaven:

2 A time [a]to be born,

And a time to die;

A time to plant,

And a time to pluck what is planted;

3 A time to kill,

And a time to heal;

A time to break down,

And a time to build up;

4 A time to weep,

And a time to laugh;

A time to mourn,

And a time to dance;

5 A time to cast away stones,

And a time to gather stones;

A time to embrace,

And a time to refrain from embracing;

6 A time to gain,

And a time to lose;

A time to keep,

And a time to throw away;

7 A time to tear,

And a time to sew;

A time to keep silence,

And a time to speak;

8 A time to love,

And a time to hate;

A time of war,

And a time of peace.

Not Alone

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Not Alone

Does it bother you when someone tells you you’re not alone? Does it bother you when you sit at home and wait for the phone to ring but never does? Does it bother you when you feel the only way people talk to you is because you talk first? Does it bother you when it doesn’t seem like there’s any conversation left between you and your friends? How often are you sitting at home waiting for anything to happen in your life?

If you’ve asked yourself any of these questions, you’re not the only one. I’ve struggled with these very same questions, and I have even seen it go a little further. My job, the people that are supposed to be there to help you won’t even call me back. It’s not because I’m a bad officer, I’m not, in fact I’m a decorated officer. I think the key to anyone being happy is realizing the world isn’t a fair place. You won’t get a fair chance, you won’t get what you want half the time, and people are generally just as bad. It’s a difficult place to be when you’re the one waiting for your phone to ring. When you question if you’ve made any difference in anyone’s life. I ask myself that very question fairly often. As I have sat waiting for my messenger to ding, or my phone to ring, I have questioned if anyone would miss me if I were gone. When you leave a job and no one misses you. When you stop being the first one to text and realize the only reason you talked every day was because of you. This realization is of course sad, and potentially heart breaking, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t true.

No matter what your currently loneliness looks like, we al must come to the conclusion that while yes in this life you may not have as many people in your life as you’d like, the fact is there are more people that care about you then you realize, they just can’t talk as much as they would like. It’s not an easy task weeding out those who are just there, and those who actually care. I’ve had my fair share of fair weather friends, but trust me when I say, when the going gets tough you will have at least a couple people there for you. I know for a fact I have a few friends that have bailed me out when bad things have happened to me. Those friends aren’t going anywhere, and even when I don’t see them often, they are still around.

I think where the line gets burry is when we don’t have many people to talk to. I think there’s a distinct difference between care, and communicate. The age of communication is over. People today don’t know how to make conversation. We are quickly becoming a society of introverts. We went from texting over talking, and from there we went from texting to Facebook messenger, to now people only share funny gifs, or meme’s. The age of talking seems to have died, and with it the care to actually get to know anyone, or getting past the surface fluff.

It’s a dark place out there and in the world, and sadly most people are lonely. Most people are seeking for a connection and that connection sadly is more and more difficult to come by. Yes you probably are alone in the way that you live a meager solitary life. You probably only have a few people to talk to, and sometimes none at all. If you’re anything like me most of my friends have abandoned ship this last year and in doing so revealing the fair weather friends and weeding through them. Those left are the ones I know I can count on, and having friends that I can count on is more important then meager chitchat.

When you dig deeper and you scrape away all the nonsense the gold is really buried under the trash. You truly aren’t alone because God will never leave or forsake you. Hebrews 13:5 “Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” God’s love for you is eternal. God will always walk with you no matter what season you’re in. Some times the teacher must let the student take the test alone, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t in the room. God wants what’s best for us and even when things go badly we must understand that there will always be tests, and there will always be sin mixed in with free will. Other people will do you wrong, and other people will try to ruin things for you. We are sometimes our own worst enemy and we must learn to overcome. While some days loneliness will feel so heavy you can’t seem to move, but trust me when I say, the Holy Spirit is always with you. Joshua 1:9 “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

We stray away and we forget but no matter how far we go we know that the love of our Abba (Father) will be with us no matter how far we fall, or how deeply we fail. A father’s love is something one can never under estimate. Our Father told us all we’d ever need to know when he sent his only Son to be born, live, grow, and suffer and die for our very sins. To be forgiven no matter what we do if we seek the forgiveness and ask for our chance to be redeemed.

Love without End, Amen

Let me tell you a secret about a father’s love
A secret that my daddy said was just between us
He said daddies don’t just love their children every now and then
It’s a love without end, amen

 We may not see the world as it is, but only our small piece of it. It’s hard not having someone to talk to when you feel alone, but if you look hard enough you will find. Pray from the depths of your heart and your needs will be met. Don’t get lost in the forest of lies and don’t let the Devil win. You matter and your contributions to this world matter. Don’t rest your self worth on others, instead allow yourself to see that your self worth is held by our Father. The creator of all things made you and there’s a reason, a purpose for it. We may not always understand or see, but pray for a moment to see the way God see’s. Everything will be alright and just keep the faith. You haven’t failed, people have failed you. Remember that the next time you feel alone in your room. Jesus a master of the universe, the true King, knowing and understanding the secrets of the universe, had to walk every day with by his point of view simpletons that wouldn’t ever truly understand what he knew. Having the comfort that the Father was watching over Him every day is peace of mind you can’t buy. Never give up on yourself because you have so much to live for, so much to do. Find your mission, your purpose and God will help you along the way.

 

 

New Day, Cold Day

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New Day, Cold Day

It’s the second day of the New Year and at the very least it’s COLD! Here in North Carolina it’ll be 12*. That’s quite chilly for this area. Now that we are moving along in this new year we can look at the upcoming season, and know that in this season of winter, while it’s cold, and miserable, the season will have to end. So many people suffer this time of year with the holidays, the weather, it’s hard to remember that this season will end and spring is just around the corner. The weather will change, the holiday blues will fade, and eventually the season of rebirth will be upon us, and when you feel as if hope is lost, hopefully it will be found again.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 “3 To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: 2 A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; 3 A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; 4 A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; 5 A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; 6 A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; 7 A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; 8 A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.”

 When we go into our new year we often say how much we are going to change for one reason or another. As for me, I am hoping to get back to work. I’m hoping to find a romantic relationship, and I hope to make a new circle of friends. I need to remember that just because I’m in a rough season now, doesn’t mean I will be stuck here forever.

No matter what problems you may face today, if it’s money, or living arrangements, or lonely, no matter what it is, the time shall pass, and the new age will rise. Don’t let the cold get you down soon it’ll be spring and the blooms will sprout, and the warm weather will start to sprinkle it’s way in. The windows will open, the birds will chirp, and the cold will be just a memory. We just need to learn to be patient when we are in a season we don’t enjoy.

When we are looking out towards our future sometimes we can’t see past the frosted window. With the right kind of effort you can thaw the window, clear the frost and see through the window again. Life is the same way. When we can’t see clearly we need to talk it out, work through the issue to gain clarity. Clarity isn’t easy to achieve, and it takes effort. We must be willing to put forth work to get something in return. If we want to see, clean out the clutter, and work on finding your focus. Have faith, and work on your relationship with Christ.

 

 

 

Weather Changes

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Weather Changes

The weather changes

And we go through phases

We strive for happy

But some thinks were sappy.

We never know what tomorrow may bring.

The gifts from above are never taken lightly.

We get and we get, but are we thankful for it?

We can’t see through the clouds, but the suns still there.

Hold your head high and believe in the sky.

We fight for those we love, we fight to protect the ones we love.

We can’t always have our way,

It’s sometimes hard to say.

We never know why, or how.

We need to always remember the vow.

Jesus loves us this is true.

Never give up, because this is true,

God will never give up on you.

Duality

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Duality
When something is liked and disliked at the same time, loved and hated, and okay and not okay at the same time.

When you wait all day for an absolution that would never come, when you look for peace that never seems to come. Waiting for God to send His Angels to pull you out of the wreckage of your life. When the Angels never come, but that voice inside your head tells you God’s with you. The snakes are nipping at your heals and you keep climbing higher and higher to get away, the beautiful escape. We never plan for the world to crumble, and we never plan on falling to our knees at the brink of a broken world, screaming to the heavens to save us. You’ve been a good soldier, a faithful man and in that moment the snakes, the vultures are tossed away. Saved by God, moved from broken to mending.

The faith it takes to overcome the world is Jesus. So why do I hate myself so much? Why do I feel so low about whom I am? The going gets rough and some hate God, some hate people, some hate themselves. That’s where my own duality comes into play. I both love and hate who I am. The fact that God loves me I know I’m special. I know I’m someone worthwhile, but I’ve largely not been treated well by others throughout my whole life. I’ve not been beaten and tortured, I’ve suffered loss, and blame. God thought tells us that we cannot put our faith in mankind because man is sinful and that sinful nature will let you down, will hurt you, and the Devil through Sin will find any little chink in the human armor and infiltrate like a virus, replicating, until sinful desire is all that’s left.

The same goes with the little whispers inside my own head. The negative whispers I hear are the Devil or his minions telling me lies, that hidden war going on all around us that we cannot see. The truth is the helmet is supposed to help, and it does so long as we keep our head in the Bible and don’t let ourselves get distracted by the world.

Don’t shut God out; don’t keep the gates closed from God. God doesn’t want us to be alone, God wants us to have someone, God wants us to know that He is always with us. God’s blessings and guidance, and the army of Angels are always by our side. When we finally realize this, when we finally tear down the walls we will realize that Love has been there all along. The season of love is always. We can’t let the trials of this world build walls and defenses. Love concurs all. Love is the strongest of emotions, strongest of actions, and that Love shows me that there is no Winter of love, no Fall of love, there’s just love. We will suffer heartbreak from love, but Love is a gift from up above, and that’s the only Love that really matters.

Take the duality inside and shatter that mirror and let God take up both sides in your heart.

The Rise and fall of an Age

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The Rise and fall of an Age

 As the son rises and falls over the vast sky the sun also rises and sets on chapters of our lives. When each chapter comes to a close we must remember that in all things fall to the glory of God. Psalm 113:3 “From the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same the LORD’S name is to be praised.” When I’m with the Lord I feel peace. When the sun sets on a chapter of my life I raise everything to the Lord and I know that I’ll be all right. Ecclesiastes 1:5-7 “The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to his place where he arose. 6 The wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about unto the north; it whirleth about continually, and the wind returneth again according to his circuits. 7 All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea is not full; unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again.” Because of Jesus we are told not to worry about tomorrow, for it will worry for itself.

The pain that comes from heartbreak, the pain that comes from loss, yet the joys that come from birth, and rebirth, the joys of success, and peace, all comes from the Lord. Daniel 2:21 “And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding:” The truth will set you free. Of course it’s easier said then done. We are left with scars of times long past. We pray for absolution, that sometimes never comes. 2 Timothy 4:2-4 “Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.” No matter the time, the season, the place, God’s on the move and is still in control. We must have faith and understand that sometimes we too will have to stand up and scream to the world that God is in control.

James 1:12 “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.” Will you be judged by man, or allow man to judge us and stand right before God? We always get the choice to live life pleasing to God. Will we be the ones to deny God to save our own skin? Throughout all times God asks only Loyalty and Obedience. It’s easy to praise God when times are good, and things are in perfect alignment, but when it falls apart, that’s when our faith is tested. Psalm 31:14-15 “But I trust in you, O Lord; I say, “You are my God.” My times are in your hand; rescue me from the hand of my enemies and from my persecutors!” Scream Hallelujah, because God is good.

As we move towards Easter remember what the resurrection did for us. Remember what our future means because Jesus bled and died for us. He fulfilled the promise of scripture and the change of seasons happened that first Easter morning.

No matter what season you’re in, no matter what chapter you’re in, the sun will rise and fall and the old will pass away into memory. Try not to fear tomorrow. Try instead to embrace it, and see the positives in the changing river.