What is your season?

I live in the most liveable city in the world; Melbourne!  I am sure that those who live in Melbourne will agree with me that it is also the most changing city and the changers start with the temperature.  I am currently (dare I say) enjoying this season of winter.  I am cosy and warm indoors, the sun is shinning, there is no grey skies to be seen and it really doesn't feel like it could possibly be 7 degrees celsius outside.
​ Yet, as I look across the landscape the trees are bleak with no evidence of life.  I can't see any birds enjoying the fruit of the tree or bees enjoying the nectar from its flowers.  There is no leaves to cover the nakedness of the branches.  There is no identifiable markers to tell me what type of tree it is.  Because I was instrumental in choosing the tree, I know what to expect come spring, summer and autumn.  
In spring which is not too far away the tree will be buzzing with bees as the blossoms start to appear and transform the bleakness.  Come summer the tree will be filled with birds and bees as they enjoy the juicy peaches (I hope to get some before its all eaten by the birds).  Come autumn the leaves will begin to fall and not before giving me radiant hues of reds, oranges and browns of lavish colour.
I am no garden expert and to be honest I prefer to get plants that need little or no attention from me.  I couldn't really tell you what the best time is to fertilise the peach tree or any such thing needed for the great results I enjoy in summer (thanks to my husband and nature).  What I can tell you is that to enjoy the fruit; time has to be invested in pruning it, fertilising it etc The tree needs care in order to produce large, juicy fruit.

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You and I are not trees; I am hoping you will agree with me that we are more valuable than any tree.  However, I like to use trees as object lessons.  Our ability to live, grow and thrive depends on how well we take care of ourselves.  We need to pay careful attention to the environment in which we place ourselves.  The people who shape us and the way we think and more so what we believe will ultimately determine our capacity to be fruitful or successful.  
​I encourage you to view every season of your life as an important time for rest and reflection.  Your ability to produce the results you want in life is dependent on it.  Ensure you invest time wisely in relationships, make time to cut back or prune the things that have not aided your development.  Create quality time to assess your goals and develop your gifts and skills.

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"For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven" Ecclesiastes 3:1.  This was written by King Solomon, a person known for many things and one of those was wisdom.  So don't lose heart and spend time dwelling in discouragement when things go wrong.  Learn from it; see it as a time to pull out the weeds.  
Today the first day of August 2017, consider your season; what activities are you undertaking to be fruitful?  What does fruitfulness look like to you?  If you were a tree would you consider one fruit a success or many?  How do you plan or choose to intentionally engage and participate in your current season.  
I would love to hear about your season and the steps you are taking to ensure your next season is fruitful/successful?  What does success look like to you? If you have been stuck in a season for too long, what is keeping you stuck?

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