How to Embrace a New Season of the Heart: Take Steps and Rest

 

In Georgia, we moved from early Spring to, as we say around here, pollen season. Although the heavy coat of mustard-colored powder required me to clean my deck and car, pollen serves a purpose. It signals a time of bees, butterflies, and more flowers. Like Spring, every season is beautiful, a creation of God—in nature and in our hearts.

I needed to repeat the wash-off-nature’s-pollen chore several times, and the freshness led me to the next step—replacing the deck pillows, potting colorful annuals, and moving my quiet time moments from inside to outdoors.

Now, in late Spring, I’m wondering how God will lead me in this new season of the heart. He promises to continue His work in believers (Philippians 1:6). I don’t want to miss a single step.

God promises to continue His work in believers for every season Share on X

Sometimes direction means move, take a step. Sign up for the Bible study class, send a card, or put the soda down, girl, and drink more water (Maybe that’s just for me).

Other times, the next step is pause, sit down, be still, listen.

If you’re in a new season, perhaps lessons I’m learning will help you.

My lessons include action steps—to follow clear commands in Scripture and to spend quiet, still moments to pause and absorb truths from His Word as I wait for His direction.

The combination of action and quiet reminds me of a spring walk in a pretty wooded area.

Walk.

Breathe.

Pay attention as you go.

Sit on a trail bench and rest.

Listen, soak it in, absorb the moments, and rest to prepare for the next section of the trail.

For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.

Ecclesiastes 3:1 ESV

Your turn

What lessons have you learned about following God into and through a new season?

For any season

For every season—and every day—God gives us the gift of His presence. What joy to pull up a chair to His table each day and spend time with Him in prayer and Bible reading. Time spent with God equips us to honor Him and pass along blessings to others.

My book, A Place at His Table: God’s Daily Gifts to Satisfy Your Heart, includes stories that occurred at a table. Each one leads to biblical truth about a particular gift from God, such as acceptance, help in trials, and rest. There are also fun Table Tips at the end of each devotion.

Readers have purchased copies of A Place at His Table, applicable to any season, for birthday, hostess, and get-well gifts, and for an inspirational summer read.

Here’s the link:  https://amzn.to/3qTTt0k

If you’ve found blessings in my book, please consider leaving a brief review. If you’ve already left one, thank you.

Embrace God’s All-Occasion Treasures

JeannieWaters.com

Part 2 in a 3-part series

Breakfast table surprises greeted my brothers and me each Valentine’s Day of our childhood. My mom either served heart-shaped pancakes with bacon and strawberry syrup or pink grits with sausage and heart-shaped toast.

Pink grits, you ask? Yes, what fun! She also sprinkled valentines and candy on the table with Pinterest-worthy flair. 

My mother adored showing love to her family and celebrating special days. For the entire week of February fourteenth, she selected dresses or slacks outfits with pink or red touches and then added a piece of heart-shaped jewelry.

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Each morning Mama chose her jewelry according to the day’s events. For Sunday school and church services at our small wood-frame church, she wore matching earrings and a beaded necklace to accessorize her dress and hat.

She wore pearls for weddings, funerals, and church directory photo shoots. For workdays at home, her wedding bands served as her only adornment. However, trips to the library, the Colonial grocery store, or a Merry Weeders garden club meeting required the addition of earrings.

Mama’s jewelry boxes held treasured pieces suitable for every occasion. Some of the bracelets and necklace-earring sets were gifts, selected especially for her by people who loved her. 

Each day we can find word gifts in the Bible selected especially for us by our heavenly Father who knows our needs. As we embrace the jewels He provides, He enables us—with His truth engraved in our heart—to face any occasion that may arise.

Every word you give me is a miracle word—how could I help but obey? Break open your words, let the light shine out, let ordinary people see the meaning.

Psalm 119:129-130 The Message

When we ask God to teach us while we study His Word, we collect cherished gems from Scripture. Like a jewelry box that holds bracelets and rings, our hearts hold dear truths that fit every circumstance of our lives.

JeannieWaters.com Image by Pixabay

I wrote in the last post, “As we store God’s words in our hearts, He transforms them into sparkling jewels that change our lives.” Thoughts from a Jewelry Box and Psalm 119

Our heavenly Father sprinkles heart verses like valentines and sweet treats throughout the Bible to remind us who He is and how much He loves us. As a loving Father, He also includes words of correction and instruction. His truths create a well-balanced, festive spread to decorate the table of our hearts with His gifts.  

Which treasured piece of Scripture do you need to add to your ensemble today? Do you need peace, instruction, or forgiveness? Do you lack faith, strength, assurance of His presence? Are you seeking wisdom, comfort, or boldness to witness? The Bible includes the right word for you today.

When a verse of Scripture addresses a particular challenge in our life, we could write it on a card and imagine wearing it as a valued accessory for a day of walking with Jesus. Perhaps we could write an encouraging verse on a valentine before mailing it to a friend.

Let’s proclaim with the psalmist:

I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways. I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word.

Psalm 119:15-16 ESV

Please encourage us by sharing how a particular Bible verse or passage of Scripture makes a difference in your life. 

In the next post—the third in this three-part series—we’ll share ideas for memorizing Scripture.

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Happy Valentine’s Day, reader friends.
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