Lent Day 13: Winter is Past
Mar 21 in Lent
It is the last day of winter, the hardest season of the year for me, in fact I could quite easily skip it altogether, I would not miss it; cold and wet, barren and harsh, where nature takes a rest; plants live off their underground food storage reserves, the soil gathers minerals while it lies dormant before the next sowing season, animals hibernate, birds migrate, days are shorter… a season of waiting …
Ecclesiastes 3 tells us that “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace”.
“He makes everything beautiful in its time”
It is all about timing, the more I read the Bible the more I realize that He is a God of order and extreme accuracy who is doing so much more behind the scenes than we realize, it may seem that there is nothing happening, yet He is always at work, His Creative Activity working to a perfect timing, to a carefully planned pattern totally under His control, fulfilling His purposes, a Grand Design! Just look at the cross, planned before the foundation of the world.
During these waiting times, it is so difficult to trust and not make things happen on your own. Sometimes He calls me to just come and SIT, do nothing, spend time with Him. Like a child resting upon his father’s knee, leaning upon his chest, totally safe in his embrace, confident in his ability to sustain, to make it all better. A place of peace, of total trust, no fear, surrendering your anxious thoughts, your deepest needs and worries for the present/future, cleaning up the mistakes of the past, healing the wounds of a fall or a kick, drying a tear on a filthy cheek, bandaging broken dreams, placing your hand in His and finally happy that He knows and has a plan as He pulls you up and you begin to walk hand in hand; no longer fearful of the future for He is by your side, teaching you to walk and avoid any pitfalls along the way… full of hope once again, Spring is on its way!