Have you ever looked in the mirror and wondered who you are, or is the reflection distorted due to the shattering effects of life? Is ‘how you see yourself’ the same as others view you? Do you compare your life with other seasons you have lived in and wonder what’s wrong?
There is a time and a season for everything under the sun. As we look into the mirror of life and view ourselves, we only see in part according to our understanding and where we are. There are different seasons we go through in growth and wholeness. If we view ourselves with the help of the Word of God and act upon it, God’s blessing will rest upon our life and we will be able to see more clearly to embrace our season and move through it.
“Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known” (I Corinthians 13:12 NIV).
“Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man” (or woman) “who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it-he will be blessed in what he does” (James 1:23-25 NIV).
There are different reflections of each season, where do you recognize yourself?
FALL is where we have labored and worked hard to pick what we have planted. The latter rain has come to bring in the produce. This is a time of process. We are enjoying the harvest of the fruits of our lives. In the midst of fullness, the winds of adversity began to blow. Change is in the air, and we know Winter is coming. Sometimes there are glimpses of beauty as we see our leaves turning and the colors of life camouflage the pain around the corner.
Have you received news of illness or accident? Maybe it was the pain of knowing the relationship was ending. Have you had goals and plans unfulfilled? Do you feel blown and hit? Can this be true?, you ask. Your dreams and hopes begin to fall away. You feel like you are being plowed under. Everything is slipping through your fingers and you feel there is nothing you can do.
Look into the perfect mirror:
“But as for me, I trust in You, O LORD; I say, “You are my God. My times (or seasons) are in Your hand;”- (Psalm 31:14-15 NKJV).
“Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You. In God (I will praise His word), In God I have put my trust; I will not fear…” – (Psalm 56:3-4 NKJV).
DECLARE THESE VERSES ABOVE OUT LOUD OVER YOURSELF DAILY”
WINTER has happened. Your leaves have fallen off. You feel stripped and are numb from the pain. This is not what you chose. You don’t know what to think, how to act. Who are you? You feel dead inside and you wonder if you will ever experience life again. Loneliness begins to set in. Your identity is lost. You want to withdraw, hide. You want to scream don’t tell me you know how I feel, and don’t ask me questions, for I don’t know what I think or feel either! Sometimes you stay busy just to cope with the avalanche that has hit. It’s cold and dark. Snow has fallen. Torrents of tears burst forth. You do not see how there can be anything good come from this. You feel the chill of what seems to be a bad joke. It must be a mistake. How can others enjoy life, don’t they know what you have gone through? Will the frost of winter ever end? How can you trust again? Harvest is over; it is time to draw on the fruit of the past. Our roots are going deeper. It’s not a time to figure things out but a time to rest.
Look into the perfect mirror:
Be still, (sink down, relax, refrain, be quiet) and know that I am God; – (Psalm 46:10 NIV with Hebrew meaning added)
The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? – (Psalm 27:1 NKJV).
You set the boundaries of the earth, and you made both summer and winter – (Psalm 74:17 NLT).
I call to remembrance my song in the night; I meditate within my heart, And my spirit makes diligent search – (Psalm 77:6 NKJV).
Prayer: ”Lord, I wrap myself in the warm garments of Your promises. You are my source of comfort in my season of trouble. Lord, I find my joy and peace in You. You have made Summer and Winter and set the boundaries of my life. I can trust you! I come to you Lord for You are my strength! I rest in You as my Winter will end and my Spring begins.”
SPRING brings new life. It’s a time to prepare for the planting of a new harvest. The pain of the past can be used to enrich our soil and grow our seeds, as we have allowed the Holy Spirit to make us ready. When everything seemed the darkest, life begins to sprout. You hadn’t realized that your roots have gone deeper during your past seasons. You have faced the experiences of Fall and Winter even when you wanted to run. You have found others beginning their ‘Falls and Winters’ and find yourself reaching out to them even when you felt you had nothing to offer. Seeds of hope develop in your life. Maybe you will make it after all. You start to discover things about yourself you had not realized before. New identity begins to form and blossom. Fresh purpose begins to bud through, releasing the pain and choosing to trust again. You are beginning to feel the warmth of healing. There are times of sudden tears and sometimes torrents, but there are also soft gentle rains that refresh the soul. Your buds are tender. Weeds would like to overtake them. This is a time to watch over your garden, dear one.
Look into the perfect mirror:
The farmer sows the word. Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop-thirty, sixty or even a hundred times what was sown” – (Mark 4:14-20 NIV).
He (God) did not leave Himself without witness, in that He did good and gave you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and gladness. – (Acts 14:17 NAS).
DECLARE OUT LOUD: “I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me [I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am self-sufficient in Christ's sufficiency]“ (Philippians 4:13 Amp).
SUMMER brings the warmth of the Son. The pain subsides and you see you will make it. The signs of the painful seasons are almost gone. You learn that God is your Husband and will meet your needs. Intimacy in your prayer life increases. You know that God hears you when you pray and that you have a special ear to hear His voice. You are moving into your purpose, establishing the borders, taking territory for the Kingdom of God. You are recognizing your assignment for this season of your life and it feels good. You see that you are bearing fruit from the past seasons. Strength and maturity become a part of you and you can handle the heat as never before. What caused you to wilt in the past, you now are fine with. It amazes you. You still find times you can get burnt, but you are wiser and move through it easier. Your leaves are the greenest now. It’s a time to see the fullness of what God has been doing in your life. Summer has come with the longest days of ‘sonshine’. This is the season of growth. Harvest time is around the bend and you take time to rest and reflect.
Look into the perfect mirror:
But his delight and desire are in the law of the Lord, and on His law (the precepts, the instructions, the teachings of God) he habitually meditates (ponders and studies) by day and by night.And he shall be like a tree firmly planted [and tended] by the streams of water, ready to bring forth its fruit in its season; its leaf also shall not fade or wither; and everything he does shall prosper [and come to maturity]“ – (Psalm 1:2,3 AMP).
For lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone. the flowers appear on the earth; the time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land” – (Song of Solomon 2:11-12 NKJV).
Do not fear, for you will not be ashamed; Neither be disgraced, for you will not be put to shame; For you will forget the shame of your youth, And will not remember the reproach of your widowhood anymore. For your Maker is your husband, The LORD of hosts is His name; And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel; He is called the God of the whole earth – (Isaiah 54:4-5 NKJV).
Do not take advantage of a widow or an orphan. If you do and they cry out to me, I will certainly hear their cry - (Exodus 22:22-24 NIV).
The LORD will destroy the house of the proud: but he will establish the border of the widow – (Proverb 15:25 KJV).
(Read Ephesians Chapter One)
Prayer: “Lord I thank you that you have declared that you are married to the widow. I let go of the shame of the past and the reproach of widowhood. I move into this season of my life to partner with you. Thank you that you have made covenant with me. I humble myself before you and reject pride from hindering my life. I praise you that you hear my cry and that you will establish the borders I set when I pray. Thank you for fresh purpose and for my holy assignment! The time of singing has come and I move into a life of worship and praise!”