The preacher says God has made everything beautiful in its time (Ecclesiastes 3:11). While our seasons and circumstances in life may go through changes, our God remains the same, and He will make even our painful circumstances beautiful in its own time. The changing times of our lives are sometimes difficult to deal with. Depending on how far I look back I can see many changes in my personal and spiritual life. Some of these changes are pleasant and some others are not so pleasant. The only one thing I can count as having been constant within all these changing times, is the faithfulness of God. Indeed, amid our changing times and seasons of life we have an unchanging God who is faithful and has all the seasons of our lives in His hand.
In the last three months, my wife and I left our home in which we have lived in for close to twenty years, and that I have called a home for more than 25 years. During all these, my wife was also changing jobs, my daughter left the home for an extended period for the first time, and my nephew suddenly found himself living alone. Moving out things from Athens was a challenge, still a challenge, and yet we had to carry on daily as if life is nothing but normal. It is in periods like this that we realize that to keep going we must draw strength from the God who has promised never to leave nor forsake us.
The God we serve is not only faithful, but He is also worthy of our trust during the changing seasons of our lives. God Himself has made it that we have different seasons and times in our lives. Ecclesiastes 3:1-6 says, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens. 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 from embracing, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away”. This essentially means our lives will consist of ups and downs. There will be times of joy and there will be times of sadness, there will be easy times and there will be difficult times. Our circumstances will always change, but we must always remember that through all these changing scenes of life, our God never changes.
He created the seasons, so He is not surprised or caught unawares by what happens in our lives. God knows for sure that my wife and I have been praying for many years for the opportunity to move to Columbus. Many job opportunities came and went but none of them worked out because they came out of season. Even now that we have moved here to Columbus, we do not know what exactly He has in stock for us. We are however sure that whatever it is God has for us, He will bring to pass in its own time, and in His characteristically faithful nature. He is good, He is just, He is perfect, and He is always loving. Our circumstances in life do not change Him.
My brothers and sisters, no matter what you are going through today, God knows. God sees you and God loves you. There is no season or time, or circumstance that you may be going through that takes you out of God’s sight. Things may seem like they are unraveling in your home, in your health, or at your work; never stop to trust God because He is able to make everything beautiful in its own time.
October 9, 2022 – Pastor Simbo Odunaiya
