I track with the seasons. It’s a byproduct of being a teacher. My work schedule is based on the seasons, more or less. For the last eight years I’ve taught classes in the summer, but my teaching schedule is still much lighter than normal. Typically, I teach only online in the summer and don’t have to drive the 34 miles through the city to campus. That alone is a lot less stress. When August rolls around (as it has this year), I gear up to go back. Then when December approaches, I get excited about my “holiday” break that gives me nearly a month away from the classroom. Not all of that time is a vacation because I’m often planning, setting up online materials, creating syllabi, and other things for the new spring semester that begins every January. Then, usually in March, I get to enjoy Spring Break. So again, I track with the seasons.
The transitions in nature from one season to the next alert us that we may need to get ready to shift things, like our wardrobes, our schedules, and our menus. Isn’t that just another wonderful way that God designed the universe? If the calendar were not enough to signal our need to prepare for transition, all we need do is look outside for clues.
Don’t you wish every impending change were broadcast to us the way the weather and biosphere broadcast seasonal change? I do. Sometimes, for me, it’s hard to know when to move, to act differently, to go a different way, or try a new thing. I’d like to think I listen for God’s voice every day, and especially when I need to know my next steps, but sometimes (for various reasons) I don’t always hear it. Thankfully, these words from Proverbs remain true, even when I don’t know the next steps to take:
“Trust in the Lord and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6).
That means, even when I’m unsure what God may be saying to me, as long as I continue to acknowledge Him, He will direct my paths. I don’t have to worry that I’ve missed a turn or that a path is forever closed for me. As long as I acknowledge Him. He promises to direct my steps. That’s good news!
