The First Hint of Spring (Seasons)

I was driving from Gonzales, Louisiana back to Jennings early Sunday morning by myself after spending the previous day at the State Livestock Show.  As we posted last night, this year is Benjamin's last show, and I was in a reflective mood thinking about how quickly the kids grew up.  It won't be much longer before Tricia and I are empty-nesters.  Time marches on, as Allen Jackson sings.

As I drove on I began to think about how life is about to really change.  It became clear to me that is has been changing day by day and then all of a sudden, the cumulative effect of time hit me like a ton of bricks.  The kids are no longer kids.  They are young adults.  Immediately, I began to have regrets.  What if I had been a better provider?  What if I had more time off from work to enjoy more time with family?  What if I had been a better steward of time?  What if I had handled certain situations differently?  Will my kids have fond memories of their childhood as I had with mine? 

"At the end of your life, you will never regret not having passed one more test, not winning one more verdict, or not closing one more deal.  You will regret time not spent with a husband, a friend, a child or a parent." - Barbara Bush

My, how time flies.  I drove in silence and began to pray.  I find that driving is a great time to pray.  If you turn off the radio, you can really focus and talk to God.  And that's what I did.  I drove along and found myself driving over the Atchafalaya Basin Bridge and looked out over the railings of the long bridge out into the swamp.

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It's a grey February day and the willow trees are leafless.  The Cypress trees still have a few rust-colored leaves hanging on.  I drove on thinking about how in the summertime, you can't see anything but a thick blanket of green leaves that envelope the swamp, making it seem mysterious.  Now, a few months later, it just seems empty and void, a barren landscape waiting for the change of seasons.

But wait...  As I exited the Atchafalaya Freeway and drove toward Breaux Bridge, I noticed a tinge of green in the branches of the trees.  Although it was in the 50's now, a few days ago, temperatures had risen into the 70's and that must have given the trees a nudge to begin budding out as Spring is nearing.

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Seasons.  God put them there.

Genesis 8:22 - While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.

God gave us the seasons.  We experience hot humid summers and endure bitter cold winters and then spring arrives.  Maybe the extremes in temperatures help us to really appreciate springtime more?

So it is, I think, with our lives.  We endure tough seasons in our lives filled with heartache, despair, disappointment, health issues, relationship issues, financial issues, etc.  Life is hard.  But we can take heart that springtime is on the way.  We just need to hold on, or better, keep holding on to the one who holds us in His Hands.

An hour later I attended church and we sang the great old hymn, "Great is Thy Faithfulness" and it was no coincidence that the second verse we sang contains the following line that beautifully illustrates my ruminations about the change of seasons from an hour earlier in the morning:

Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest,

Sun, moon and stars in their courses above,

Join with all nature in manifold witness

To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.

“Great is Thy faithfulness!” “Great is Thy faithfulness!”

  Morning by morning new mercies I see;

All I have needed Thy hand hath provided—

    “Great is Thy faithfulness,” Lord, unto me!

He is Faithful and He'll take care of us throughout the seasons of our life.  Springtime is indeed on its way!