The Winter is Past!

by Julie Davenport​

See! The winter is past; 
    the rains are over and gone. 
Flowers appear on the earth; 
    the season of singing has come, 
the cooing of doves 
    is heard in our land. 
Song of Solomon 2:11-12

I have lived in Missouri for almost all my life. They say if you don’t like the weather in Missouri, just wait until the next day, and it will change. I love that we have four seasons. I love the new life in spring, the sun in the summer, the beautiful leaves in the fall, and I even like to watch the falling snow with my red birds at the bird feeder in the winter.
​ 
If there is one of those four seasons that I look forward to being over the most, it would have to be winter! Even as I type this and look out my window, it is sunny. Looks can be deceiving, though, because it is actually cold! I am ready for warm!  

"Have you ever been
in a season of life
that you are ready...
​to be over?"

by ra-photos from Getty Images Signature

​Have you ever been in a season of life that you are ready for it to be over? I remember when I went through many years of infertility, I was so anxious to someday have babies. When I finally had my two miracle babies, I was looking forward to the day when they would be out of diapers. When they were in all kinds of activities and I was chauffeuring them around, I was looking forward to the day they would drive. Now, looking back, it all went by so fast.  

​Although I miss those days of my girls being little, I am enjoying this season of having them as my adult friends. Now is a season of grandchildren and even great-grandchildren, and I am loving every minute. So many times, we end up wasting our time of enjoying the season we are in by always looking to the next season. 

I remember a particularly hard season in my life several years ago about this time of year. I gained a bonus son in my second marriage, and he was going through a very low point in his life. We were desperate over his situation. At the same time, our youngest daughter had travelled to India for an extended stay to work as a missionary associate. I was concerned about her being so far away from home and the conditions she would be staying in. 

On the spring morning after she left, both of these situations were heavily on my mind and in my prayers. I looked outside. In the little tree in my front yard were two dove eggs. I became fascinated with watching them hatch. In just a few days, they did! I watched them learn to fly and leave the nest in the days ahead. Amazingly, every day for a few weeks, they would both come and sit on the rail of my back deck. I named them after our son, Donnie, and my daughter, Chelsea. You may think I am a little crazy, but it was a reassurance to me every day that I saw them that Donnie and Chelsea were in the Lord’s hands. One day I only saw one of them! I was like, “Is that Donnie or Chelsea!”  

Thankfully, Chelsea made it home safely from India and is now married and a mother. Donnie came through his crisis, miraculously, and came back to the Lord. After that, there would be more hard seasons to come. We have all gone through many seasons of sadness and sorrow. However, the Lord is always faithful. He always brings us through.
 
I want to encourage you today if you are in a hard season, know that “this too shall pass.” God will carry you through, and when you look back you will be stronger and more ready to face the days ahead.  

Even if like me, you are older and have been through many seasons, you can look forward to the days ahead. I love this scripture in Proverbs 31:25 NIV: 

She is clothed with strength and dignity; 
she can laugh at the days to come.

I encourage you to embrace the season you are in today. God will not fail you. He never has and He never will. He has promised to clothe us with strength and dignity and that we can even face the days ahead with joy and laughter. 
​
One more scripture from Psalm 126:2 KJV to put some spring in your step:

Then was our mouth filled with laughter,
and our tongue with singing:
then said they among the heathen,
The Lord hath done great things for them. ​

My prayer for you dear ladies is for you to have a spring and summer filled with laughter, singing, and joy. No matter the season you are in, you can always find something to be thankful for and little things to celebrate. 

I know that looking back at raising my children and the many seasons we have been through, I can say with confidence that the Lord has done great things, even in the midst of some of the hardest seasons. There have been treasures in the darkness. I am praying the same for you! Happy Spring and Summer! 

---

If one word could depict a life, Julie Davenport’s would be “redemption.” As a child, Julie’s character was forged within a legacy of faith, godliness, and ministry, so when she married a charismatic young pastor on the fast-track to prominence, life was everything she’d dreamed it would be...on the outside. But inside, alone and hidden from view, Julie endured abuse, betrayal, and infidelities that spiraled to include miscarriage, cancer, divorce, mental illness, and eventually suicide. Julie is now an ordained AG minister who through speaking engagements and two daughters continues the legacy of ministry, God is using Julie’s life-story to validate His immeasurable grace and prove His power to redeem what Satan tried so hard to destroy.

---