Too Many Feelings Too Close Together
Ecclesiastes 3:1 tells us:
To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.
Sometimes the seasons of life are as fickle as the seasons in Texas. One day we’re wearing flip-flops. Next, we’re looking for mittens. It’s ridiculous.
And it’s life.
Last August, our family celebrated a milestone birthday for me (my 60th), the birthdays of two of our grandchildren, and said goodbye to my 97-year-old father.
This week feels a lot like last August. I type these words while sitting at the bedside of a dying family member. He will likely not last the week. Yet later this week, my daughter will graduate from college, my youngest grandchild will spend the night at my house, and we’ll kick off observing Mother’s Day the following week.
With apologies to Charles Dickens – it is the best of times and the worst of times.
It’s a week of highs and lows. It’s a week of laughter and tears. It’s a week of life.
What do we do when our emotions swing back and forth in such rapid succession that we feel a bit seasick? How do we rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep when everyone simultaneously plays both roles on the same stage?
The answer is: We remember to trust. Yes. It’s that simple. And sometimes the simpler answers are the best ones.
The One who can be trusted with our eternity can be trusted with our seasons even if the seasons are harsh, even if the seasons are long, even if the seasons change from one moment to the next.
Hebrews 13:8 reminds us that Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He is the solid rock. He is the sure foundation. He is the Savior for our souls and our Sustainer for every season, even when the season calls for sorrows and celebrations.
Even when it calls for swimsuits and snowsuits.
