Seasons Of Life

The other day I read a story about a man who had four sons. He wanted his sons to learn not to judge things too quickly, so he sent them each on a quest. In turn, they were to go and look at a pear tree that was a great distance away.

The first son went in winter, the second in spring, the third in summer, and the youngest son in the autumn. When they had all been and come back, he called them together to describe what they had seen.

The first son said that the tree was ugly, bent and twisted. The second son said, no - it was covered with green buds and full of promise. The third son disagreed. He said it was laden with blossoms that smelled so sweet and looked so beautiful, it was the most graceful thing he had ever seen. The last son disagreed with all of them; he said it was ripe and drooping with fruit, full of life and fulfilment.

   

The man then explained to his sons that they were all right, because they had each seen but only one season in the tree's life. He told them you cannot judge a tree, or a person, by just one season, that the essence of who they are and the pleasure, joy and love that come from that life can only be measured at the end, when all the seasons are up.

If you give up when it's winter, you will miss the promise of your spring, the beauty of your summer, and the fulfilment of your autumn. The moral of this story is not to let the pain of one season destroy the joy of all the rest. Don't judge life by one difficult season. Persevere through the difficult patches as better times are sure to come. 

Welcome to 2013. No matter what season of life you're in, remember God is in control of them all and "... he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus" (Philippians 1:6).

{Figtree Bulletin, I. Barnett}

Praying this encourages you, no matter what season you're in!