Adjusting in Changing Seasons

I remember when I got my first 10 speeed bicycle.   I felt grown! This bike was more than just a basic kids’ bike. This was a bike that would adjust to a variety of terrains. 

My challenge was learning which gear the terrain called for. Many times, I found myself with a loose chain, causing it to slip off the gears. This was quite frustrating.  Other times, the chain was dirty and dry, causing the gear not to shift properly. This, too, was equally frustrating. 

Fast forward to today. Metaphorically, I find myself in similar frustrating moments.  The gear seems stuck. I can’t move forward, or either the chain slips off.  I try to keep going, hoping it will work itself out, but no, it doesn’t happen. I have to stop, take inventory of the situation, and be with what is. I ask myself, “What does this situation call for? What is it asking of me? What is mine to do? Do I need help?and Is there a new perspective I need to consider?”

These questions are not answered quickly. If answers came that easy, we would all pause to ask basic questions like these. Instead, I linger with the questions. I rummage through my own inward chaos, searching for a way forward. As I linger and rummage, I come to a place of stillness, a place of serenity. This place is where I find the rest I did not know I needed.

It is out of the rest that the way forward becomes clear. I begin to see where I am stuck, where I need help, and where God is at work in me. I only needed to get off the bike, pause, and open to a new perspective.

The ride home is always sweeter when I’m open to new perspectives!