“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:”

Ecclesiastes 3:1

Solomon penned these words more than a couple thousand years ago and they still hold weight and truth for living today. Through wisdom given to him by God, Solomon recognized that life is divided into seasons. Just as we may enjoy summer over winter, or the other way around, there are seasons of life we enjoy more than others.

Seasons change whether we are ready for them or not. A wise man or woman prepares in advance for the season to come. Our current season is influenced by the sowing/preparations we made in the previous season.

In our modern society, we tend not to think this way because we no longer have to harvest our own food supply or need to store away food during the winter. We simply go to the supermarket to buy fresh produce delivered from a hemisphere that is in a different season than us.

Setting aside our modern lifestyles, without proper preparation, the winter months could be difficult or impossible to survive. Yet with all our modern conveniences, this truth remains, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap,” Galatians 6:7. What you sow (plant) today will take time before you reap (harvest) results tomorrow. If you do not like your current results then you may want to look at the type of “seed” you’ve been planting. You can’t harvest what you have not sown.

It’s a common response to blame others for the unhappiness we experience or for the discontentment with our current season. This type of mentality is detrimental to genuine joy. If we are not making an investment towards our future, relationships, or situation then we should not expect a favorable outcome.

If you can’t be happy ‘here’ you won’t be happy ‘there’.

A change in scenery is a misinterpretation that my joy is fully dependent on my surroundings. YOU are the common denominator in your environment. So if you are unhappy here, moving to the other side of the planet will not make you any happier until you begin to invest in your future, today.

Sowing and reaping is not easy work.

The process of a seed giving life to a fruitful plant requires death. The seed must be buried and die in order to give life. The challenges you are experiencing may be the growing pains towards a joy-filled future. I have known too many people who have abandoned their dreams, their relationship/marriage, or a job prematurely because it was no longer enjoyable. Too many people have given up or refused to put in the effort for a better future.

If you want the kind of life everyone wants, then be willing to put in the work that most are unwilling to do. Solomon understood that life is divided into seasons. There are blessings and work required in each season. Don’t reject the season you’re in because it may be more work than a blessing.

“Let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season you will reap, if we do not give up.” Galatians 6:9

Commitment, faithfulness, and perseverance will pay off if you don’t quit. Life is not one long summer. There are stormy days of fall and bitter cold nights of winter but they come to an end with spring and summer. Let perseverance win over your temporary discomfort that gives way to a harvest.