I’m sitting in my sunroom today looking through the windows. Birds are eating seeds from the feeder, deer are walking through the backyard, and the trees are swaying in the wind. We’ve had some very hot and humid weather this summer. But it sure is comfortable “inside” these glass walls in the sunroom.
The reason I’m so comfortable is because of the heat pump we installed when our home was built. The heat pump is designed for all four seasons. In the winter and cooler months, it somehow extracts heat from the atmosphere and warms the house. In the summer months it removes moisture and keeps our living quarters cool and comfortable. It is a modern marvel that makes our home pleasant all times of the year.
In life there are “seasons.” Things change according to the rhythms of life. When you EXIT one season, you ENTER another. Every EXIT is an ENTRANCE. A child exits his mother’s womb, and enters the world. When the baby leaves infancy, it enters childhood. Soon the child will leave elementary school and move on to middle and high school. Adolescence passes, and then comes adulthood. Life passes quickly, and barring death we all come to old age. When our last breath is breathed, we EXIT earth and ENTER eternity. Every Exit is an ENTRANCE. Seasons of blessing give way to seasons of trial and difficulty. Our seasons through this earthly pilgrimage are marked with EXITS and ENTRANCES.
Nothing is static. The times are changing rapidly. An “era” once lasted for about a thousand years. The assumptions and behavior of the majority remained constant during that prolonged time span. But knowledge has increased to warp speed. People’s thought patterns are evolving constantly. Some remarked that now an “era” only lasts for a few years. In order to function effectively, we must adapt to the ever-changing environment. The only thing that is consistent is “change.” Seasons come and go.
So what we need in today’s moving environment is a FOUR-SEASON FAITH. We need strength and convictions to navigate the good times, as well as the bad. Our faith-system must be workable regardless of the environment.
One year preceding a snowstorm my son had taken our tractor to his house. Without a tractor to scrape away the snow, I drove our four-wheel drive truck up and down the snow-covered driveway many times trying to make it passable for our car. Without the multi-wheel drivetrain on the truck, we would be homebound until warmer weather melted the snow. I am glad we have an ALL-SEASON TRUCK for times like that. But I’m even gladder we have an ALL-SEASON FAITH!
Ecclesiastes tells us there is a season for everything under heaven…
To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace. (Eccl. 3:1-8)
We are not sovereign over the seasons, but we can negotiate life’s seasons “by faith.” Outward circumstances will fluctuate, but our inner man should function like a thermostat, not a thermometer. Paul was beaten, shipwrecked, applauded, derided, unappreciated, dearly loved by some, and hated by others. His experience varied greatly. Yet in all these “seasons” he thrived and “kept the faith.”
Paul’s words to Timothy apply to us as well…
“I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom;
Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine…
But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.
For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.
I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith” (2 Tim. 4:1-8)
Paul “fought a good fight”, “finished the course”, and “KEPT THE FAITH”! His earthly existence consisted of seasons including battles, blessings, and building. Far from a picnic, his journey was marked with extreme difficulties. How did he make it through? What made the difference for him? It was his FAITH in Jesus.
“But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Cor. 15:57)
“For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.” (1 John 5:4)
Whether in prosperity or problems, health or sickness, triumph or trial; our victory is found in the non-changing Christ. The gift of faith, which He has given to all His children, is for all of life—and EVERY SEASON.
Harold Vaughan
