Fruit of the Season
Embarking on this years Holy Days, as well as contemplating a few wonderful email conversations with some dearly beloved women in my life, I find myself pondering the concept of seasonal living. The more I learn about the Holy Days, the more I realize that we worship a God of seasons and appointed times. He has a prescribed calendar, written in His word, and He tends to move about with the timing of this calendar. Many of the great acts in the life of Yeshua fell perfectly in line with the Holy Days and the Hebrew calendar. He was crucified at Passover, resurrected on First Fruits, and the gift of the Holy Spirit was given at Shavuot. This timeliness is part of His character.
His word teaches that men and women are both made in His image, an attribute of man that separates us from all other acts of creation. As I experience more of life, and glean insight from others a little further in the journey, what I've observed is that my nature as women is cyclical and seasonal. My productivity and purpose change with age and circumstances. This is one way that my femininity is reflective of the character of God.
As some point during my pregnancy with Aviel, the Lord gave me a picture for this seasonal nature -- that of an evergreen and and oak tree. The evergreen has little variation in appearance and function through out the year, but the the oak tree has a seasons of fruitfulness, transitions, and hibernation. Perhaps the life of a man more closely resembles the imagery of the evergreen, where as the women is the great oak, transitioning between times of fruitfulness and times of rest with the changes present in her life.
This is greatly evidenced in the feminine biology; one where our fertility peaks in our twenties, then declines through our thirties and eventually ceases to exist at the time of menopause. It can also be seen through the demands of a child on our bodies. For a season of nine months, some activities are limited while the body of a women nurtures new life. For a season afterwards, a women's body continues to sustain that beautiful new life through breastfeeding. The need for proximity between a mother and her nursling prevent certain activities for a time. But lest she forget that it is only a short time, and a blessed time at that!
Recently the Lord has expanded this seasonal illustration through our times shopping in the Shuk. One observation I've made is that fresh produce tastes best and is most affordable when its in season. Wouldn't it be to our advantage, both festively and financially, to eat the fruit of the season? Why not live life the same way? Prudent living might be to recognize the season of life and feast on the fruit of that time. Right now, I know that I'm in a season of child bearing and rearing. Aviel will never need me the same way he does now. The fruit of the season is tending to his needs, teaching and instructing, making memories as he grows, and doing so with the energy and resources the Lord has given me for this time. Placing some long term desires on hold while caring for him is an act of feasting on seasonal fruit, while being sure to sow seeds for the harvest of life's next season. I can trust the Lord with the dreams of my heart. My goals, visions, desires do not have to manifest at one time. It may even be more profitable and enjoyable if they blossom at different times. If something is on hold, its no cause to fear, but time to trust that its in the soil of the spirit germinating for a later harvest.
The more I surrender to the seasonal nature of my life- as a testimony to the Glory of God and for the health of my family and myself -the greater I am able to walk in peace and contentment.
Resources:
Creating a Life: What Every Woman Needs to Know about Having a Career and a Baby Sylvia Ann Hewlett
Thriving as a Modern Day Woman, Podcast with Shaunti Feldhahn and Robert Lewis Part 1, Part 2, Part 3
Revive Our Hearts interview with Candice and Steve Watters: Part 1 (Stewardship of Your Fertility), Part 2 (Are There Enough Children in the World?), Part 3 (The Rewards of a Parents Sacrifice)
Related Posts:
Adventures During Sukkot 2010
Adventures in the Shuk
Tiny Hands, Pocket Change, and the Black Drawstring Bag
Frozen Flowers
"Oh Big Baby!"
He has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also set eternity in their heart, yet so that man will not find out the work which God has done from the beginning even to the end. Ecc 3: 11
His word teaches that men and women are both made in His image, an attribute of man that separates us from all other acts of creation. As I experience more of life, and glean insight from others a little further in the journey, what I've observed is that my nature as women is cyclical and seasonal. My productivity and purpose change with age and circumstances. This is one way that my femininity is reflective of the character of God.
As some point during my pregnancy with Aviel, the Lord gave me a picture for this seasonal nature -- that of an evergreen and and oak tree. The evergreen has little variation in appearance and function through out the year, but the the oak tree has a seasons of fruitfulness, transitions, and hibernation. Perhaps the life of a man more closely resembles the imagery of the evergreen, where as the women is the great oak, transitioning between times of fruitfulness and times of rest with the changes present in her life.
This is greatly evidenced in the feminine biology; one where our fertility peaks in our twenties, then declines through our thirties and eventually ceases to exist at the time of menopause. It can also be seen through the demands of a child on our bodies. For a season of nine months, some activities are limited while the body of a women nurtures new life. For a season afterwards, a women's body continues to sustain that beautiful new life through breastfeeding. The need for proximity between a mother and her nursling prevent certain activities for a time. But lest she forget that it is only a short time, and a blessed time at that!
Recently the Lord has expanded this seasonal illustration through our times shopping in the Shuk. One observation I've made is that fresh produce tastes best and is most affordable when its in season. Wouldn't it be to our advantage, both festively and financially, to eat the fruit of the season? Why not live life the same way? Prudent living might be to recognize the season of life and feast on the fruit of that time. Right now, I know that I'm in a season of child bearing and rearing. Aviel will never need me the same way he does now. The fruit of the season is tending to his needs, teaching and instructing, making memories as he grows, and doing so with the energy and resources the Lord has given me for this time. Placing some long term desires on hold while caring for him is an act of feasting on seasonal fruit, while being sure to sow seeds for the harvest of life's next season. I can trust the Lord with the dreams of my heart. My goals, visions, desires do not have to manifest at one time. It may even be more profitable and enjoyable if they blossom at different times. If something is on hold, its no cause to fear, but time to trust that its in the soil of the spirit germinating for a later harvest.
The more I surrender to the seasonal nature of my life- as a testimony to the Glory of God and for the health of my family and myself -the greater I am able to walk in peace and contentment.
He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers. Psalm 1:3
Resources:
Creating a Life: What Every Woman Needs to Know about Having a Career and a Baby Sylvia Ann Hewlett
Thriving as a Modern Day Woman, Podcast with Shaunti Feldhahn and Robert Lewis Part 1, Part 2, Part 3
Revive Our Hearts interview with Candice and Steve Watters: Part 1 (Stewardship of Your Fertility), Part 2 (Are There Enough Children in the World?), Part 3 (The Rewards of a Parents Sacrifice)
Related Posts:
Adventures During Sukkot 2010
Adventures in the Shuk
Tiny Hands, Pocket Change, and the Black Drawstring Bag
Frozen Flowers
"Oh Big Baby!"
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