Through the busyness of the Christmas season, it has been essential for me to create small pockets of time to reflect on this year. The travel. The beauty. The memories. The changes.
As I begin to sift through the memories of our time on the road and the quick transition of a new season, it’s easy to become overwhelmed with how much has changed.
Over the past couple of months, I’ve learned that change is constant, yet something we never truly become used to.
Maybe we are not meant to fully adjust to the ebbs and flows of the seasons we walk through, but rather, learn to embrace them.
Trees never fully adjust to winter. Instead, they lean into the barrenness and stand tall through the cold. Once the chill and frost are gone and spring draws near, they welcome the shifts in weather and learn to flourish in an entirely new way.
Throughout nature, we see the constant adjusting—the constant altering. Nothing ever stays the same.
I believe that is precisely how God structures our lives. He brings us into new seasons, not so that we can fully acclimate but so that we can embrace the beauty that lies within the change. To welcome the new and step into all the season has to offer us.
But as winter cannot remain forever, neither will each season we walk into.
We must learn how to flourish with every change and allow ourselves the room to experience the happiness, sadness, or pain that may come along with it.
Change is never easy, especially around the holidays.
Chairs that were once occupied by loved ones now remain empty. The changes in traditions feel unfamiliar and strange. Financial strain and physical burdens leave no room for the giddiness shared by those around us.
Whatever our change is, it can be easy to become preoccupied with it. To allow it to consume us and dictate how we approach our day.
What if, rather than letting the changes in our lives dictate our lives, we choose to embrace them? What if we restructure our perspective and take on that of a tree in winter–welcoming the change and letting it reshape us?
This holiday season looks different for my family. For as long as I can remember, my family has gathered around the same table, ran around the same yard, and enjoyed stories around the same campfire for Christmas. Now, everything has changed. Traditions have shifted, and the family is no longer gathering as one.
While there is a sadness that comes along with the change, I’ve tried to reshape my perspective and welcome the change. To welcome this precious gift of new.
This season will look different for many of us, but no matter the change, there is beauty to be found in the reshaping it can create. Endless memories to be made from the new doors that will open.
This holiday season, I pray that we can learn to embrace the changes of the season. To let a new perspective reshape and mold us into the people God desires us to be. To learn to flourish right where we’re at.
