There was a man who had four sons. He wanted his sons to learn to not judge things too quickly. So he sent them each on a quest, in turn, go and look at a pear tree that was a great distance away.
The first son went in the winter, the second in the spring, the third in summer, and the youngest son in the fall.
When they had all gone and come back, he called them together to describe what they had seen.
The first son said that the tree was ugly, bent, and twisted.
The second son said no – it was covered with green buds and full of promise.
The third son disagreed, he said it was laden with blossoms that smelled so sweet and looked so beautiful, it was the most graceful thing he had ever seen.
The last son disagreed with all of them; he said it was ripe and drooping with fruit, full of life and fulfillment.
The man then explained to his sons that they were all right, because they had each seen but one season in the tree’s life.
He told them that you cannot judge a tree, or a person, by only one season, and that the essence of who they are – and the pleasure, joy, and love that come from that life – can only be measured at the end, when all the seasons are up.
If you give up when it’s winter, you will miss the promise of your spring, the beauty of your summer, fulfillment of your fall.
Don’t judge a life by one difficult season. Don’t let the pain of one season destroy the joy of all the rest. (Happy Life)
This enjoyable story is so true. After I met Joyce she told me you need to know someone for all the seasons before you think about marriage. She made me wait for an extra year of seasons before she told me she would marry me. For us she was right. We will be married 36 years this October. Through all the seasons of your life, you can find something to be thankful for. You have to look! God brings you through many lessons, some easy and some that are painful. For some reason we remember the hard lessons when our faith is tested. The easy lessons just flow down the river with no waves and we forget to be thankful for that blessing we were given. As a church we do the same thing. We remember the good times when people cared about the church and took time from their week to give thanks to God. Today, with sadness we look at our empty church and see people are too busy. Parents who have other priorities than seeing their children go to church and learn about God; let alone take time to go themselves.
Do you think the world is better off in the season of life we now are in? Do you think that the world is better off with God at the sidelines? What will it take to get back on the path by the tree in the story to realize you cannot skip a season of life? The tree would die without spring before summer or fall before winter. There is a reason for everything. There is a reason God sent his only Son to give us a chance to be forgiven and go on to the next season of our lives. Without God and His Son, Jesus, we are not fulfilling the purpose we are here on earth for. We are heading to the season of fall. This could be the season you were waiting for to recommit to your Savior, your life, and the church. Step into the light and feel the glory God is waiting to give you. Only you can make the choices that will affect all your seasons to come.
In Faithfulness,
Rev. Coy
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