Winter, we sense it coming; for many it is with dread, but there’ nothing we can do to stop it. There’s a chill in the air, leaves are falling and soon there will be a blanket of snow covering the ground. A quick look at the landscape and it would appear that many trees and plants have died, but in reality, they are very much alive. Life is no longer visible, but know, growth is happening. While many hate it, Winter is important to life. The best time to plant trees and plants, is the end of Fall and the beginning of Winter. While we love the spectacle of Spring with the flowering trees and shrubs, love the spade in the Summer and marvel at the fireworks of color in the Fall without Winter none of it would happen. It’s what happens in Winter, that makes every other season possible. Roots grow deeper, wider and stronger, stamina for the heat of Summer is developed and the eventual growth of the trunk and branches all happen in the Winter. While we see nothing, in reality everything is happening.
May I suggest that each of us need “Winter” in our lives, times when it may appear that we are dormant but in reality, great growth is happening. Maybe you sense a Winter coming or you’re going through a Winter right now, often it doesn’t make sense and others may misjudge your season. It’s the “Winter times” of life when it may appear that we are dying, that nothing is happening in our life or that we are “just existing.” In reality, your likely in one of the greatest seasons of your life; your growing deeper in faith, stronger in your relationship with God and developing spiritual energy that will bring an explosion of growth when the Spring of life returns. It’s in the Winter when we lose the old, grow deep and prepare for a new season. Let me encourage you to embrace the Winter times in your life. Kings had Winter homes where they retreated, Paul paused his evangelism for Winter and scripture even records that Jesus dealt with Winter. Are you in a Winter? Settle in. Build a fire, grab a blanket and get a good book. Enjoy the pause, embrace the rest and take time to grow deeper in God’s Word, prayer and your walk with God. No need to worry and fret, Spring will come, but only when God says your Winter is over.