The Seasons Series
| Guest Essays |
How God has been present, and oh so faithful, in every season of life.
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After a Little While
By Vivian Cumins Vivian is graciously sharing Day 1 of her devotional and guided journal. If you enjoy this excerpt, consider ordering her resources at the…
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How to Grow Deeper with God Even in a Heartbreaking Season
It is possible to grow deeper with God in a heartbreaking season by running toward Him instead of away from Him. When we do, we realize we are never alone.
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Letting God Guide Your Path
Allowing God to guide our path not only gives us comfort, but often produces unexpected miracles along the way.
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When a Dream Comes to an End
The words stuck with me when I hit “deactivate,” and the digital platform disappeared. It rang in my heart when I sent the last email to members. It comforted me in the immediate aftermath when I wondered why God would ask me to step out in faith if He knew it would end this way, and if my creative dreams would always lead to this.
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My Sabbath Season
I imagined my Sabbath year would feel like spring, a lighthearted, happy skipping through fields of wildflowers with Jesus and napping by still waters in green pastures. That wasn’t what God had in mind. It turned out to be a full year of a sweltering Louisiana August.
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When Nothing Seems to Be Happening
Waiting.
It can be one of the most difficult places to be.
It’s the space between the prayer and the promise.
Between the asking and the answering.
Between what we had hoped for and what we currently hold.
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How to Find Peace in a Waiting Season
Life is full of unexpected change.But if you have peace, then no matter the circumstances, you will have longevity.
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Held by Grace
Even in the imperfect arena of mothering, after we enter the dark spiral, we can glimpse the morning light and realize, but grace—that we’ve always been held by grace.
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God, Can We Chat?
Niki Hardy is an author, speaker, and coach, who believes God loves a cheerful doubter. Yes, our questions hold power, but not to weaken our faith, to strengthen it and draw us closer to God.
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Life in the Holy Land
My lesson from life in the Holy Land: Let God walk with you, and wherever you go, He will be present as you continue leaning on God.
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Facing a New Season of Life? Then Read This
God designed life to have changing seasons. These seasons are temporary—they were never meant to last.
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With Whatever Talents You Possess
Ultimately, all that matters is that we show others Jesus, and we speak the gospel.
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A Baby, the Empty Nest & the Promise
Moving into new seasons of life can be unsettling. Just like becoming a first-time mom. Missing the former, hopeful for the future, but a little uncertain.
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A Little Red Surprise
Seasons will bring scary changes, but there’s comfort in seeing God weave symbols into my life as reminders that He never changes; He’s right there with me, and thankfully, He’s the One holding the pen.
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Letting the Old Fall: Making Way for the New Thing God Is Doing
He was showing me I need to release to fully embrace and enjoy the new season and the new thing He is doing in and through me.
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The Beauty of Change
Fall foliage holds profound insights into embracing life’s transitions. I am always mesmerized by the brilliant leaves on the trees yet dread their shedding. As I reflect, I marvel at the ease with which they release from the branches. The leaves don’t seem to hesitate, struggle, or question God.
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The Promise of Rainbows: Finding Faith in the Storms of Life
My husband’s rescue was a testament to God’s presence in our lives, even amidst the darkest storms.
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Transforming a Season of Dying into Living
At some point, both of us and all of us, will face our last day. We don’t get a choice in how we die but we absolutely get a choice in how we live.
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Somewhere Along the Way
Losing my mother after moving to care for her and my dad is a milestone I need to explore. My season of caregiving was packed with moments together. Not all of them were pleasant or easy, or even ones that I wanted to relive, but saying yes to caring for my parents during their final years is something that I always want to remember.
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Stepping into a Season of Reliance & Resilience
It’s spring here in North Carolina but I’ve never seen a spring like this before. We moved from the Midwest in the fall and while the letting go was hard, God is beginning to show me the hope that comes from new seasons.
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My Dreams Came True—and I Nearly Died
Just over a year ago, my oncologist said I would not live to see 2023. She cautioned me about traveling and described (in detail) all the ways my advanced-stage cancer could lead to a medical emergency. Undeterred, I prayerfully decided to delay chemotherapy.
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Loving Others by Living Undistracted
In that moment I felt unseen, unimportant, and overlooked. I vowed right then I would never make another feel the way I felt.
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A New Beginning
By Christa Spaeth And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree…
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Handling Grief During the Holidays
By Dr. Gladys Childs To all who mourn in Israel, he will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning,…
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In Every Season
By Jennifer McAlister I parked my car on the side of the road and put my head in my hands. The snow on my windshield,…
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A Woman for All Seasons
By Jackie Freeman For everything, there is a season and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time…
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God Redeems Our Stories
By Shannon Leibold I’m 45 and going back to school, hoping the old adage ‘You can’t teach an old dog new tricks’ simply isn’t true….
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Encountering God’s Heart in Nature
By Susan Smith The goal of life is to make your heartbeat match the beat of the universe, to match your nature with Nature. —Joseph…
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Faithfulness That Multiplies
by Kate A. Coker-Daisie I wasn’t the smartest math whiz in elementary or grade school, and when I went to the University, I often needed…
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Surviving Harsh Boundaries
by Eugene C. Scott Two months after our wedding The Redheaded-Wildflower (my wife Dee Dee) ventured into the magnificent mountains I first experienced backpacking when…
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Legacy of a Mother: Grace and More Grace
By Sue Donaldson I’m fully aware that we become mothers to teach us humility. Just when we’re about to understand who we really are, our…
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A Long Winter, Then Sunshine
By Donna Chacko, MD My dark winter happened more than thirty years ago. I was very busy as a married mother of three who worked…
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A Brave New Thing
By Robin Melvin During my husband’s Army career, we lived in seven states including Alaska, Arkansas, Alabama, and Texas. I enjoyed them all but missed…
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Loving Well By Letting Go
by Evelyn Sherwood When my dad moved in with us back in June of 2019 due to congestive heart failure, I had one prayer on…
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A New Season Beyond the Fairy Tale
by Lindsey Bell As a child, it never occurred to me that life might not work out exactly as I planned. Maybe it should have….
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Joy in Every Season
by Vicki Bentley “Oh, I remember those days!” I turned, red-faced from wrangling my two young daughters and a cart full of groceries, to see…
