Weather patterns

I was thinking this morning about all that is going on right now, and my mind was drawn to Ecclesiastes. Ironically, a friend of mine has been pointing me there for the past several days, so a little repetition is never bad. Based on the idea that there are indeed seasons, I feel like I'm experiencing sort of a spiritual El Niño on a daily basis.

But God is good, and through this refining process we each become more like Him. I sat on my porch for awhile yesterday, enjoying the weather and the sunset, and I noticed the shrubs that we have next to the sidewalk. I did a wretched job of pruning them awhile back, but I noticed that on every branch, there was an array of small, shiny new leaves. How much more then shall we grow when God prunes us? Ugly branches like pride and doubt. All that stuff, though painful to lose, winds up being used for His glory.


"There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace."

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8