Welcome back to the Promises of God Podcast, Episode number 46. My name is Tracie Rollins. I want to thank you so much for spending some time with me as we learn and take action on God’s promises in life. This month’s series is about the changing seasons of life, and we’re working out of the momentum devotional offered by Bible journaling ministries titled Seasons. You can learn more about Bible journaling with their free 10-day Bible journaling course at BibleJournalingMinistries.com. Today we’re talking about embracing the season you’re in, and our verse is Psalm 30:5. I’ll read that out of the World English Bible. It says for his anger is, but for a moment, his favor is for a lifetime weeping. It may stay for the night, but joy comes in the morning. David writes this song in a season of his life where he wanted to build this temple for God.
He wanted to build the most awesome temple for God, but God said No. And when things don’t go as we planned, when God closes a door, we should continue to praise him. This, this section here, this verse clearly says his favor is for a lifetime and joy comes in the morning. So continue to praise the Lord when he closes the door and then we will move on to a different direction, right Sometimes we think we’re on the right journey or this is what we want to do and God just closes that door and we can sit there and stare at the door for a while and hopefully not for too long, but we can. And um, I think it’s time to move on. I think of God has closed the door in your life. I know he’s closed many doors. I’m so thankful for the doors that he is closed because I think being on the other side of that, that door on a different door, um, it’s neat to kind of look back and say, you know, if I would’ve been given what I was asking for, I would not be the woman I am today.
And so I praise the Lord for all of the doors that he has closed. So instead of complaining about what we can’t do, like David couldn’t build a temple. He wanted to; he provided so many resources for the building of this temple. So he like planted seeds and you know, did his, you know, provided materials provided labor, but he did not get to harvest. He did not get to harvest the fruit of that temple. Like that wasn’t his thing to do. And when we don’t get to do the things that we want to do, um, we do what we can. Right. And that’s what David did. He did what he could and give God all the glory. I find it hard to always find joy in every season. I remember getting a call from my dad on my honeymoon, brand new bride, my grandmother, who was at my wedding just a few days earlier, who I just hugged in love.
I just loved this woman. I was told that she had passed during my honeymoon, and my bride season quickly turned to one of morning, and I grieved the loss of a woman who encouraged me to love Jesus. I just, she was the one that just played the perfect role model for me, maybe not perfect, but she played the role model for me of one that just was so committed to her church and those, and she did love the congregation. She loved to go to George. He loved to be in fellowship with her church. And, um, she just encouraged me to love Jesus. Before she died, um, during my time of prepping for my wedding, I got to sit down with her now and again, and she made me promise her that I would eventually go back to church. Cause at that time I wasn’t going to church, and I promised her I would.
And I made good on that promise years later. But, um, I was comforted in the knowledge that I’d see her in heaven. So I was comforted knowing that she was in heaven. But having her physically missing from my life was devastating for me. I mean, I was on this high of being a bride, brand-new brides with my husband. We were in Maui; we were riding downhill bikes, we were snorkeling. And the next second I get this devastating news about my grandmother, and I packed up, and I went home during my bereavement leave while others were sifting through her belongings and searching for a momento to remember her by. I was the back room of her little three bedroom, one bathroom house. And I was looking at these boxes of cards. He was a card saver. Every card she had was in a box. And I was looking through those cards and staring at the rice fields and the trains that would go by.
And I remember all of the Times that I spent with her, the summers that we got to spend with her, the weekends we got to spend with her occasionally. And I remember being in that backroom staring at the trains as they would go by and the trains are right across, there was a rice field, so it was her house, big rice field, and then trains and the trains would go across the track. And I just remembered all the times that, um, I was with her, I remember her dancing with us as kids. She grabbed my arms, and we’d dance around. She flung me around the room. It was so fun. I remember her eyes lighting up when she, Oh, when we opened up Christmas presents, I remember walking to the little grocery store and my gosh, this grocery store, I don’t even know if they exist anymore, but this one is no longer there.
I had a chance to visit it a few years back, and it’s not, it’s awful now. But back in the day, there’d be this little grocery store, and it had, you know, just the necessities for the small town that we’re in. A small town called Biggs, California. Isn’t that just kind of funny and there would be a butcher there, and you could order like your ground beef. You could order what we call these were um, hot weenies is what we would always order. And um, she get us licorice, and we’d walk back home, and it was just a small town. I still smile anytime I think about it was just small town, slow times with family and just, Ah, just love, love, love. I loved it when we were driving to church or the store. Sometimes we’d have to go to town to a town called Gridley, which isn’t that much more significant than bigs, but it wasn’t in town. So we’d get in her own Lowville, and she would play these eight-track tapes of crystal gale. And I loved listening to Crystal Gayle and the back of her Oldsmobile. These moments. I think you can hear my voice boys fill me with joy, but the tears still run down my face today. I haven’t forgotten her or the seed she planted in my life, and I’m grateful for the seasons that I got to be with her. And as I talk about missing her, I wonder what season your n I hope that you’re in a season of joy and harvest, but if you have days or seasons where the world seems to be against you, maybe you’ve lost a loved one as I have. Maybe your finances haven’t worked out. I’ve been there. I’ve been without income. It is tough. Or perhaps you’ve had to say goodbye to your oldest son like I’ve been telling you about this whole season and just learning how to let go and let our birdies fly.
You’re not alone, Hun. Seasons change. You have one life to live. It’s important for you to surround yourself with those that you love and remember the joys of the past and let them bring a smile to your face even if the tears come because they were there for a wonderful season and be hopeful for the future. Fruit is wonderful, but in order to be trees that bear good fruit, they must start as seeds, seeds covered in dirt longing to break your free and reaching for the light. There’s something waiting for you, something amazing waiting for you. When you embrace the season that you’re in today and you break through the darkness of the dirt and reach for your father this week, take some time to write down what you’re hopeful for. If you feel like you’re hopeless, calling the Lord and ask him to show up in your life.
Ask him to shed light on the darkness of what might be surrounding you. Reach out to those around you and help and ask him to help lift you of whatever it is that you’re struggling with. Ask God to show up in your life and but also look for him. When you ask him for something, you got to stop, and you got to find him. You got to see what it is he’s doing in your life. It could be the smallest flutter of a butterfly wing. That could be your answer. I don’t know, but you gotta look for it. If you’re asking, sometimes God is obvious, and sometimes it’s not obvious. A lot of times I’ll ask them to please be super obvious with me, like hit me over the head, but that might not necessarily be the good thing either. So embracing season, you’re in it.
Thank God for every second of this crazy life that we’re in. You’re not promised tomorrow. Romans 6:23 says, the wages of sin is death, but a free-gift of God is eternal life in Jesus our lord though turn to him, confess your sins and follow his will in your life and you will feel the love of Christ that surpasses all understanding. I want to thank you so much for joining me in this series. I cannot wait to talk to you next month as we start a new series here at the Promises of God Podcast. Have a blessed day. Goodbye.
Episode 046: Embrace the Season You’re In
