Compared to our southern California, fall arrives early in Idaho, but somewhat irregularly. In mid-September, Sheila and I visited our grandkids there and discovered The Village at Meridian, a small “city” of streets and shops and cafes, centered by a marvelous fountain with hourly shows that synced music with the streams of water and lights. But while sitting at an outdoor table at Bodovino by the fountain, Sheila pointed out what may be even more intriguing. A nearby tree, maybe in the maple family, was already boasting its fall colors. But another, next to it and maybe an aspen, still had its vivid pale green leaves. Summer was nearly over, fall had started its entry, but the trees got caught in between.
What a delightful lesson on how life changes, how so many dimensions of it vary, and how many things come to pass, not to stay. I couldn’t help but think of Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, in The Message version of the Bible.
“There’s an opportune time to do things, a right time for everything on the earth:
A right time for birth and another for death, A right time to plant and another to reap,
A right time to kill and another to heal, A right time to destroy and another to construct,
A right time to cry and another to laugh, A right time to lament and another to cheer,
A right time to make love and another to abstain, A right time to embrace and another to part,
A right time to search and another to count your losses, A right time to hold on and another to let go,
A right time to rip out and another to mend, A right time to shut up and another to speak up,
A right time to love and another to hate, A right time to wage war and another to make peace.”
The seasons of life are both actual and metaphorical, so how do we navigate them? A couple of tips.
1 Realize much of life is designed to be temporary and will pass. Not just seasons. Skiers and snowboarders may grieve over the end of winter, but Sheila rejoices. But it will return.
2 Find the rhythm that change brings. Embrace rather than resist it. It’s real.
3 Optimize your timing—of knowing when to do what, as Solomon advised. How do we know this? Experience helps, both our own and watching others. And, get to know God’s heart, not just his words.
4 Realize, like Solomon did, that an exception to change exists. God. A little later, in verse fourteen, he gave the caveat, “I’ve also concluded that whatever God does, that’s the way it’s going to be, always. No addition, no subtraction. God’s done it and that’s it. That’s so we’ll quit asking questions and simply worship in holy fear.”
Worship. Realizing, and living like, God has more worth and value than anything in this world he created and gave us.
Kick Starting the Application
How well do you handle change? Do you tend to hold on too long or quit too soon? In what ways could you do better? How accurate are you in figuring out the right thing to do when? For you, what works best and worst in determining that?