God Is in the Multiplication BusinessSample

Recognize the Seasons of Life

In life there are times of multiplication, but there are also times of drought and hardship. Have you ever noticed how these seasons of life mirror the passing of the natural seasons? Ecclesiastes 3:1 says, “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven.”

Naturally speaking, winter is often cold and barren. Nothing blooms. Animals hibernate. Then spring comes, bringing freshness and new life. During the summer, there is heat. In fall, it’s time for harvest.

Just as there are seasons in nature, our lives have seasons. Some are barren and cold. Some are filled with new hope and new life. In some seasons we plant and water and we don’t see anything come up for a while. But then comes the harvest.

If you’re in a winter season right now, don’t quit or get discouraged. Spring is coming in your life, just as surely as it comes in the natural every year. God hasn’t stopped multiplying you. Your season of increase is coming if you’ll simply keep believing.

Seasons are temporary. The hard seasons don’t change your destiny. During the winter and summer times of your life, seeds are growing under the ground.

When my children were babies, I can remember thinking, “I can’t wait until they walk.” And when they did, it added new challenges to my life—for one, they no longer stayed where I put them.

Then I thought, “I can’t wait until they go to school.” Soon enough, they did! And again, there was a whole new set of challenges, for them and for me. After a while I realized there was always going to be a new season. I might as well not get in a hurry, enjoy the season we were in, and embrace the next one when it comes.

There are always going to be seasons in your life. If you don’t like the season you’re in, there’s good news: it’s going to change. Conversely, if you love the season you’re in, be sure to enjoy every moment because it, too, is going to change.

If you’re in a season of multiplication right now, enjoy it. And save up! If you’re in a season of barrenness or heat, don’t worry—your season of increase is coming. Because God is still in the multiplication business.

(This devotional series is excerpted from Karen’s book Why God Why: What To Do When Life Doesn’t Make Sense).