Cycles and Seasons

This post looks at the reality of there being cycles and seasons in our spiritual growth and development. This flows from the reality that the patterns of grace mirror the patterns of nature. There is a tendency to view our spiritual growth in a linear manner. However, on a micro level that is not how nature operates. Things grow through time and get bigger and more mature; but if one looks closer, the process is cyclical.

For the last thirty odd years I have been involved in wood work. I have been working with timber which comes from trees. Through this I have come to realize that tree life gives us a useful image of spiritual growth and development. If you cut a tree down and look at a cross- section of trunk of the tree you will notice that there are a number of growth rings. Each ring represents one year of the life of that tree.

 If one looks even closer each annual growth ring is made up of two parts- a darker and a lighter one. The darker section is harder and more compact than the lighter one. These two sections of the growth ring represent summer and winter growth. The winter growth is the denser and harder band. It tends to be narrower than the summer band, where the growth is accelerated. The summer band is softer and spongier. It is the winter band that gives the tree its strength and rigidity.

In similar fashion we go through cycles and seasons in our spiritual growth and development. We experience both good times and difficult times. They feel to us like winter and summer, and seasons in between. We tend to want the summer to be endless, but that is not the reality of the life which we live. We are bound to the cycles and seasons of life, just as surely as nature is.

 We can fight this and live in denial. The problem is that if we try and live as though an endless summer is possible we are bound to end up being frustrated and bitter. The healthier option is to go with the flow of that which is inevitable; recognizing that as surely as the winter we are in is cold and unpleasant, spring is soon to follow.

 It is also in the spiritual winter that we get stronger and tougher; and develop resilience. It is where we are forced to trust in the strength and provision of our loving Father. This is where our relationship with God is deepened. Without these challenges we will inevitably take that love and provision for granted; as spoilt children do. In the process everything becomes devalued, and unappreciated. There is nothing sadder to see than that.

Questions for reflection:

·         How do you deal with the cycles and seasons in your life?

·         Do you resist and try to live in denial?

·         Do you have an attitude of gratitude when you receive life’s blessings?