CHURCHES COLUMN: We should make most of winter and not wish our time away

How many of you are waiting for spring with an increasing sense of urgency?

To be honest, some of you may have had that feeling of restless waiting since early November!

It seems not everyone is a fan of winter. Especially one with lots of grey skies.

Growing up I remember enjoying winters, playing with friends in snow, frost, icy puddles. As I have grown older, I seem to have enjoyed winter less and less and this one less than most.

Instead of planning ahead, planting seeds well before spring, so plants would be ready to go outside when the time came, I simply wait for days to get lighter, and long for the warmer weather to begin.

But maybe, seeing as there is a time and season for everything, we should become more intentional and focused on making the most of our time, even the cold months, hard times; even when some restrictions linger, and not live as though waiting for them to be over as quickly as possible so we can start to live again.

I have accepted a truth you probably already know. When you focus too much on the future, you miss out on the present; when you don’t plan for the future, you miss opportunities!

Focusing only on spring arriving, without enjoying winter, is simply wasting several months of your year and, over time, years of your life! But failing to plan for new seasons ahead will also mean you miss opportunities.

I have found the same thing to be true of the spiritual life. At times, it can be easy, even natural, to focus your energy on the future.

It could be avoiding spiritual change until “such and such” happens or waiting for someone else to take the first step. If you are waiting for a better day to take your next step of faith, you might never start moving.

Instead of tolerating your current spiritual status and longing for change, make today the first day of a changed you and try to live in the now. Plan for the ‘not yet’, finding life in both.