Detours and Destiny

Hi Everyone,

Spring begins tomorrow and it is so symbolic of the new season that is beginning in my life.  Three years ago today my life took a detour.  Really all of us have detours in our lives – some take us down exciting new paths we have never seen, while others can take us to unpleasant and often scary places.  What is exciting about both the good and unfortunate detours that we find ourselves faced with in life is the comfort we have knowing that eventually construction is complete and the detours end. 

My dear friend Jen Smith took this photo of the OK Allen Bridge in 2011 at the point when the “season”  of winter first begin in my life.  Sometimes we find the “seasons” in our lives do not correspond with the dates on the calendar – winter can last for years instead of months.  

However, what God so beautifully revealed to me once again in my life in the past two weeks is that He does listen to the deep desires in our hearts and even when we think the doors of time have been nailed shut in our lives, after the detour ends, He will also allow for the “season” in our life to change from winter to spring. 

My heart is giddy with excitement – yes, I just said “giddy” – with respect to the doors that are being opened and the new paths that have resulted from my life’s detour.  Metaphorically speaking, the sunroof is open and the music is loud because this “season” that the Lord is taking me into I never thought would come again.  Wish me well!!

A Time and A Season for Everything

Hi  everyone!

This morning as I walked my dogs I could not help but notice the changes in the leaves.  Oranges, reds, and various other colors paint such a mosaic in the forest trees.  That is the beauty of living in my little corner of the world.  

Fall has always been my favorite time of year having spent many days in the woods camping and hunting with my family.  I was reminded of the seasons that we all go through in our lives as well.  God captures is perfectly in Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8 (NIV).

¹ There is a time for everything,
    and a season for every activity under the heavens:

²     a time to be born and a time to die,
    a time to plant and a time to uproot,
³     a time to kill and a time to heal,
    a time to tear down and a time to build,
⁴     a time to weep and a time to laugh,
    a time to mourn and a time to dance,
⁵     a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
    a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
⁶     a time to search and a time to give up,
    a time to keep and a time to throw away,
⁷     a time to tear and a time to mend,
    a time to be silent and a time to speak,
⁸     a time to love and a time to hate,
    a time for war and a time for peace.

I could not help but notice this morning as I watched the leaves fall to the ground that they make a graceful dance.  Sometimes the changes that happen in our lives happen at a slow and graceful pace, almost like a dance.  Yet when the acorns and Hickory nuts fall on my neighbor’s tin roof the sound is very abrupt and sudden.  Sometimes too, changes happen more suddenly and abruptly in our lives.  

Fall can be used to symbolize the falling down and shedding of different things from our lives; while winter may be seen as a stark and cold time for us.  There is also a side of these two seasons that is not so drab.  These two seasons, just like cold seasons in our lives, are also a time for us to draw near to the ones we love and treasure the gifts that God has given us.  We can hibernate, if you will, with God’s word and let it fuel us until spring returns again. 

 

While some view winter as a bad thing, the seasons, just like us, need winter so that we can appreciate the beauty that spring brings.  Just like the season, we will have a spring in our lives where new and beautiful things are brought to life.   We cannot control the seasons that surround us, which is all in God’s timing.  God’s timing also determines the length of the seasons in our own lives.  The key to it all, draw close to Him and cherish each season for the good it brings forth in our lives.

As I watch the leaves fall I will sit back, take a deep breath and enjoy the view.