Feeling The Summer.

Sorry that I haven't been posting much lately, folks. I've been quite busy! And that's actually a bit of what this post is about, in a way.

Last year, I got the opportunity to hear my then-mentor do a sermon on the Seasons of Life. It was about how we have different seasons in our life, and looking at how we can work with that rather than trying to fight it or not being aware of it. The seasons can be grand-scale, and over all of your life, but they can also be over particular parts as well, like in work, ministry, family, relationships, etc. And they always go in order as well, though not always for the same length of time.

In essence, the seasons are:
Spring - a time of new beginnings, of learning and trying new things. Starting afresh.
Summer - a time of work, of growth and making things happen.
Autumn - a time of harvest; of reaping what has been grown in the Summer. The peak period.
Winter - a time of cutting back, of letting go of some things. A fallow period, as such, to get ready for Spring.

To hear them in a bit more detail, you can listen to the sermons on each different one here.

Last year for me, I had a lot of different seasons operating at different levels. But overall, I think it was Spring; it was the start of something new, something fresh, something different. It was a time of learning and new growth.

This year, though, is coming in to a time of Summer. And that means work.

And I'm not just saying it's Summer because Summer is after Spring, so that must be next. I'm saying that because based on what I'm seeing and what's happening, I know that this is a Summer season. Historically, I have not been fantastic when it comes to Summer seasons. I'm not a fan of summer in general. It's very hot, and I don't like hot. I like warm, but not hot. Thankfully, this summer (actual summer, not what I'm talking about above) has been quite moderate - and even a bit wet and cool, so that's been nice.
But come Summer, I've often just rested on my laurels and sailed through fairly easily. Didn't need to do much to get by; and it only started catching up with me (as it inevitably does) at the end of high school.

And this Summer season, I know, is going to be quite important. I don't know exactly what it has in store; but I know it's going to be busy. I know there's going to be effort, and work involved. And I know that if I don't put in that effort and work, come Autumn, there won't be anything to show for it. And I'll have only myself to thank for that.

For those worrying that I'm going to overwork myself - I don't think that's possible. I'm a little too good with giving myself breaks. Which is good in some senses (means I don't get overworked), but not good in others (means I can get a bit pressured with deadlines).

So yeah, that's what this next season is looking like for me. Thought that you folks might find that interesting.