There are different seasons in a year. If we cling onto summer, tanning lotion, backyard cookouts, beach trips, sleeping in, and flexible schedules, we will miss out on what God has for us in the fall. We will not be able to enjoy the pumpkin spice lattes (or whatever you drink from coffee shops), flannels, pumpkin patches, smell good candles, hay rides, fall festivals, or Thanksgiving celebrations with family.

If we cling onto fall and don’t move onto what’s next, the gifts of Christmas won’t be in our lives. This is the season set aside to celebrate God’s entrance into the world through Jesus’ birth. We find joy in giving, being surrounded by loved ones, singing, and dreaming. Our hearts are expectant with hope. After Christmas is over, we get to celebrate a new year. This means welcoming in change and hoping old things will get better. 

Then we have Valentine’s Day, an official holiday to love those closest to us. Spring ushers in new life, baby animals, and the greatest celebration of Jesus dying on the cross and raising Himself from the dead!

What season of life do you find yourself in now?

I just finished one journal and have been reminded of how odd the completion of journals marks seasons in my life.

June was dreamy. I was expectant for certain things to happen. I was full of hope in spite of circumstances that said I shouldn’t be.

It was full of graduation parties, birthday get-togethers for my friends, eating ice cream and dinner with my family and grandparents, making arrangements to move vintage furniture to make a Pinterest idea of mine come to life, writing thank you cards, shopping, and church services. 

I honestly had a lot of unconnected puzzle pieces floating around in my chest. A lot of prayers I prayed were focused on gaining clarity and knowing the direction I should walk in next.

There is one picture I took in Yellowstone National Park that carries meaning. I have been trying to find the words from God to pair with it to share with you.

Standing in a valley between two mountains, I couldn’t even notice I was standing in a “valley.” It seemed as if this spot was just a part of a mountain. 

Valleys are gross, ugly, and unpleasant, right? Not this one. It was breathtaking, beautiful, and full of life. Unique forest flowers covered the ground. Sage was patched together covering the valley’s surface. Bison grazed the valley in packs. They found safety and provision there.

Maybe you are standing (or sitting) in a valley right now. You look up and see others receiving the things you have prayed for. The two mountains to the left and right of you seem intimidating. You had started to climb up one and then fell straight back down. The relationship you invested yourself into doesn’t seem to be working out. Things at work feel more negative than positive.

Sitting in the sage and flowers surrounded by bison and their babies, you see people partying up on the mountain peaks. It distracts you because you wish you could be there too. Trying to get to the points of life your friends and others are at, you reach up and keep slipping time after time.

Maybe God is asking you to BE STILL, to WAIT PATIENTLY FOR HIM, and to EXPERIENCE HIS LOVE IN DEEPER WAYS THAN YOU HAVE EVER KNOWN.

Will you embrace this valley with me? Yes, I believe God is speaking to YOU! Our Father knows your heart. He sees you struggling in prayer. It’s hard to find the right words to even pray at times. Speak Jesus’ Name, and know He is there with you! Rest in the valley. Enjoy this season of preparation for the trek ahead. You don’t have to worry about falling right now. You are close to the beauty God has made in the low areas.

In what parts of your life is God showing you favor right now? In what ways is He blessing you?

Honestly, my spirit’s cravings look a bit different today than they did a month ago. It’s a new season in more ways than one.

I completed my commitment to not date in high school on June 1st. That was my graduation day. I thought for sure June would be the month God’s earthly love story for my life would begin and start to play out. I really was so excited and expectant about this.

My Father knows what I need and when I need it more than I do. He rids my life of distractions and even Godly and good things at times. This is something I struggle to see in full now but hopefully someday will!

Dancing into July, God is showing me the areas of His favor in my life now. He blessed my trip to Forward Conference. Prayers I’ve lifted up for years were answered! God and I’s book is now going to be sold in the Greenville, North Carolina Barnes and Noble store!

I’ve received a summer girls ministry God idea to take action on.

I’ve been blessed with scholarships that will pay for my community college. 

There is purpose in me living at home. I thank the Lord pretty much daily for reordering my steps for college. 

I’ve been given speaking opportunities at least once a month since March. I was able to share the Gospel and Hope of the world with all age groups (from two and three year olds to seasoned adults) at a Vacation Bible School a few weeks ago!

In what ways is Jesus giving favor in your life, my friend? It may not be packaged in the ways you thought it would be, but accept the blessings. Come join me in this place some people call a “valley.” You and I are giving a new meaning to it. Yes, we may still have some questions, but we aren’t destitute or depressed. We know Whose, and therefore, who we are. We are having a picnic, picking flowers, singing praises, and walking through it all with our FATHER!

When the time is ready to go worship on the mountain, God wants to know you and I faithfully worshipped Him in the valley.

Don’t waste this season where you are. Embrace it. Be welcoming to change. Know that in every season of your life, God has good gifts and sweet moments to expose you to His sweet Presence. Our God is real, and He hears you!

“Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.” -Psalm 37:7 KJV

“He says, ‘Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.’” -Psalm 46:10 NIV

“For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.’” -Hebrews 8:12 NIV