View Blog Entry

Three bathing suits and a dress for $15.74.

Was this in the 1950s? No, it was last December off the clearance rack at JC Penney. Why so cheap? Because my treasures were out of season. They would have netted the merchant a couple of hundred dollars a few months earlier. But in early winter, shoppers line up to buy sweaters, coats, and scarfs. Bathing suits aren’t needed when temperatures are below freezing—unless you are crazy enough to do the polar plunge in the Atlantic.

At a wedding, we expect dancing and laughter. My youngest daughter, Rachel, married last month. From the flowers to the music to the colors to the venue, she did a great job of planning her special day—and it was lots of fun.

When someone dies, we expect the opposite. My husband is a pastor and has conducted many funerals. Never once has he seen dancing at a funeral. Instead, it is a time of tears, quietness, and reminiscing.

Last fall, I glanced from my office window and saw hundreds of large black birds congregating on a nearby roof. It was rather eerie. The last time I saw this many birds was when I watched the Alfred Hitchcock thriller, The Birds. The movie responsible for the terror my generation feels when we see a flock of black birds. God has built into these featured creatures when to gather for their flight south for the winter.

Seasons are important to merchants. They are even more critical to believers. We also have seasons—times for laughter and times of sorrow. And yet God created both of these seasons, each for its own purpose.

Whatever season you are in—joy, sorrow, rebuilding, or planting—remember each has its own divine purpose.

Take God along through each season of your life.

(Photo courtesy of pixabay.)

(For more devotions, visit Christian Devotions.)