Today I met with someone and we were discussing a huge change she is making in her life. She and her husband are now empty nesters and they sense that there is another season that they need to step into. One of my favorite subjects is just that:
Stepping into each season with confidence
Our lives are divided into seasons- childhood, adolescence, years of education, perhaps marriage and children. We change jobs and move to another city or home. Change is not only impossible to avoid, it can be good for the soul. Change can bring a new sense of purpose and challenge that adds to your life in ways you never dreamed possible.
Years ago, my husband and I moved to Germany as part of my husband’s time in the army. I had three small children and the change was rough at first. But I came to love the shift in my life and the many opportunities I had living in a foreign country. Yes, I was stretched at times and even lonely, but the benefits of living there changed my life. Relationships with my German neighbors were forged and they have been some of the best friends of our lives.
Today I want to share with you possible ways to know when a season is about to change; things I have learned along the way as I lean into each new season with expectation.
- When you become restless in the season you are in, it may be God preparing you for a new step.
- Grace often lifts when a season is ending. For example, you may be going through the motions of a job and you realize that something is off. It is possible that God is showing you a new path.
- You have a growing sense that the Lord is whispering something in your heart; first not recognizing His voice but wondering if it is really Him. You may be hearing a whisper of change and then His voice grows louder as you continue to pray about it.
- And lastly, I ask trusted friends to pray and help me listen. We all need accountability friends who will walk alongside us and help us hear.
Change is something that we all face at times in our lives. But how do you know if you are hearing God’s will? My favorite scripture provides the answer.
Do not conform to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is–his good and perfect will. (Romans 12:2)
Tucked away in Paul’s letter to the Romans he gives us the clue to finding our God-given path– renewing our mind with God’s Word. His Word directs our path and His Word instructs us in the way we should go.
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you. (Psalm 32:8).
And here we find in this verse another secret to finding God’s path– His loving eye is on you.
Friends, when you sense God moving you into a new season, you may experience some of the things that I have described and perhaps you will not. But what you will experience is His loving eye upon you and his Word illuminating your path.
