Don't Waste Your Season

By Anna Bachinsky

It’s that time of year again. 

The leaves are beginning to change colors. Clouds are starting to fill the sky and replace the sunrays with rain. My sandals and my sundresses are going back into the back of my closet for the remainder of the year.

Fall is officially here.

And just like any season it means I must say good-bye to what once was and embrace the changes at hand.

I think if there is anything that the changing of seasons teaches me it’s this: nothing really lasts forever and, as long as I find myself in a certain season in life, I need to make the most of it.

Ecclesiastes 3:1 says, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens,” and those words are true not just for the environmental seasons in our lives, but even more so our personal seasons.

There was a time when I was a child and had to learn all there was to know about the world around me.

There was a time when I started going to school for the first time and my mind expanded every day with new knowledge and experiences.

There was a time when I was going through my teenage years trying to figure out my identity and where exactly I fit in.

And with every new season in life I grew and matured and become the person I am today.

Each season has its own challenges and its own unique blessings and even more so, lessons to learn if we are careful to face each one with the guidance of Christ.

The problem is sometimes when we don’t find ourselves enjoying the season we are in we waste our time wishing we were in the season we were before or waiting for the next season to come, and by doing so we end up missing out on the moment we have at hand.

Often times college students dream of finally graduating and starting their careers that they miss out on the opportunities they have to not use their years wisely not only to get educated  in a certain field of study but also to minister on campus as Christ’s light to everyone around them.

Often times singles can’t wait to finally get married and all they worry about is looking for “the one” and what they seem to be missing in their life that they waste precious time worrying about the days ahead when they could instead be devoted to serving those around them with the time they have and developing their relationship with Christ.

Often times married parents are so excited for their children to grow up and get out of the house that they forget they only have a very limited period of time to invest into the futures of the next generation, and they don’t devote as much energy as they could to building their children up.

Which season do you find yourself in today and are you making sure to use it wisely for God?

If you are a college student then your college campus is your mission field. Don’t miss out on sharing the gospel because you’re in a hurry to graduate and get out.

If you are currently single then everyone around is the mission field. Use your time wisely to minister effectively because when you’re married your time will be a lot more restricted in ways in which you can serve.

If you are married then your children are your greatest mission field. Teach them wisely during their developmental years because they won’t be under your roof and your guidance for too much longer.

Whatever season you find yourself in today, make the most of it.

Don’t wish for your yesterdays to come back and don’t start pining for what tomorrow might bring.

God has specific ways that He can use you during this season in your life.

Don’t allow this one to be one that you will remember as being the season you just couldn’t wait to move on from.

Let it be the one you gave wholeheartedly to God to grow in and to serve in.

Just like summer ended and fall came, so eventually the season you find yourself in will one day end, whether it’s a fairly easy season or a challenging one.

Don’t waste a single moment of it.

Like Paul says to the church in Ephesus “Be careful with how you live and make the most of every opportunity” (Ephesians 5:15-16) because tomorrow is not guaranteed to anyone.

Dear Jesus, please help each one of us remember that the season we find ourselves in today is only temporary and we need to serve you wholeheartedly in it. Please show us daily how we can make the most of our time during this season so that when we look back we can say we spent it all for your glory. Thank you. 

Amen.

[Photo courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net]