It’s time to shed your leaves… (Reblog)

Early morning on November 4^th as I was downstairs having some quiet time with God, He said “this is a season of Self Control”. That did not have anything to do with what I thought we were talking about, but I took note of it.

Throughout the day I thought of all the areas in which I needed that self control/discipline: Sticking to my budget, eating the foods that were best for my temple, managing my time effectively, keeping my morning appointments with God…etc. As the day turned into days and then weeks, it seemed as if the more I focused on Self Control, the more elusive it became. It really didn’t make sense. And of course, the over achiever that I am, caused me to beat up on myself.

A month later I was sitting downstairs again, early morning, and God said “You have been focusing on the wrong word in the sentence.” Okay. He said “the word you need to focus on is ‘season’. Seasons change and each season is to be used for preparation for the next”.

Then He said “look outside”. “Look at the trees, they are shedding their leaves in preparation for the next season; winter. If they don’t shed their leaves in the fall, they will not survive the winter”.

The tree in my front yard had bright red falling leaves and the one in the back yard had no leaves. So I did a quick search and found that deciduous trees shed their leaves in autumn or ‘fall’ so that they will have enough nutrients to survive in the winter. Both the tree and the leaves would not survive in the next season.

One of the things I love most about God, is that He KNOWS His children. Instead of focusing on what I couldn’t get right, He merely showed me WHY it was important for me to get it right; to exercise Self Control. If I didn’t flip my bad habits and hone in my good ones, I would not survive or be successful in the next season He has for me.

This made sense to me. It seemed like my own personal parable 🙂

So this I share….what things, habits, people, relationships are you trying to drag to the next season? What skills and habits do you need to hone in this season so that you will be ready for the next? Whatever that is….

Prepare, prepare, prepare!  Shed those leaves. Life will seem overwhelming if you don’t. Because you will only have enough energy for your own survival and none to help or tolerate anyone else.

A man without self control is like a city broken into and left without walls (Prov 25:28)

Blessings

JC