Understanding Where You Are (Stewarding Your Season #1)

The days of this season blend together. Our routines and rhythms are mundane, yet so life-giving. Our morning play time and walk by the river reminds me to slow down and enjoy these days with my growing boy. My daily Bible reading is a breath of fresh air in an otherwise ordinary day. 

This season is one of slow growth. It’s one of reclaiming who I am as a woman, apart from my work or what I can produce. It’s a season of planting seeds and growing deep roots before any sort of blooming can take place. And honestly, this season is one of wondering if this writing life is for me after all. In reclaiming who I am, I’m also discovering new interests and passions as I allow myself to dream of a future that is open-ended and in God’s hands completely. 

This is where I find myself today. Where is it that you find yourself?

Where Do You Find Yourself Today?

This question seems easy enough to answer. But for many people, it’s complicated. For someone just learning the concept of seasonal living, it can be difficult to compartmentalize life into “seasons” or “chapters”. The transition between seasons can often be difficult to pinpoint as well. For others, even naming the characteristics of their current season can be overwhelming. This is especially true for those who are experiencing a time of challenges or a season of deep growth. Even the monotony can be difficult to name.

For so many people, life is just happening around them. They aren’t an active participant, and they live life by going through the motions. Things just are the way they are. But are they really?

When I look back on my life, I see now that I lived this way for a long time. Life just happened around me, and I was caught in its waves. I didn’t understand my season, and in turn, I didn’t know what God was doing in my midst. I wasn’t even open to God’s movement because my mind and heart were so clouded. It’s hard to admit that I wasn’t even an active participant in my own life for many years.

But as I’ve grown and matured, God has revealed to me that life comes and goes in seasons. And through these seasons comes an invitation to partner with Him as I go. Life is not as fulfilling when I’m going at it alone.

It’s become clear to me now the various seasons I’ve walked through to get me to this point in time. Seasons of doubt, wandering, wilderness, transition—they all brought me here. But if I’m going to continue to grow and experience life fully, I have to understand what God is asking me to partner with him in. I believe that comes with understanding the season of life we are in and naming it.

God has revealed to me that life comes and goes in seasons. And through these seasons comes an invitation to partner with Him as I go.

Understanding Your Current Season

This series is all about stewarding our current season of life well. The first step in doing this is understanding our current season of life. We cannot steward well what we don’t understand or don’t realize that we have. We have to break down our current season into something more digestible and easy to comprehend so we can understand it and accept it. 

Being able to name our current season empowers us to live it more fully and presently. When we understand where we are, we can become a more active participant in our own life. Instead of going through the motions, we instead can show up, eager to experience what God has for us.

When I started viewing life in chapters, it helped me to better comprehend what I’m experiencing in the present moment. It gave me permission to focus on the here and now when the world was focusing on the hustle. And once I started naming my season and looking for the goodness in it, my life began to change.

I want that for you too. I long for each of us to live a full life, experiencing all that God has for us, learning the lessons God gives through trials and slow growth, and becoming more like Christ daily. Let’s learn to understand and name the season we are in so we can grow together.

Once I started naming my season and looking for the goodness in it, my life began to change.

Reflecting on Where We Are

In order to truly understand something, we have to figure out what is true and what isn’t. We have to reflect and observe. 

Here are some reflection questions to help you understand what season of life you find yourself in:

What are some characteristics of this season? (i.e. peaceful, dry, challenging, etc.)

What is familiar about this season? What is new or different?

How can you feel yourself being stretched in this season?

What trials are you currently facing?

What big life events have happened recently?

Oftentimes, the characteristics of this season will point you to what kind of season it is. If you’re feeling spiritually dry, this may be a season of deconstruction or spiritual doubt or drought where you will need to spend some time reclaiming your faith. If it’s covered in peace and contentment, this may be a season of rejoicing in the little things and planting seeds.

The trials, life events, and stretching in this season will also point to what season you are in. It could mean a season of grieving a loss, transitioning, or shifting identity. Of course, many seasons of life include many characteristics and feelings of being stretched. The beautiful thing about the human experience is that there is nuance. There is no one size fits all.

When we begin to reflect upon where we are, we are on our way to living a fuller life. So, wherever you find yourself today, know that understanding and naming it will only empower you to live it better. We are on our way to stewarding it well.