It has been awhile since I have participated in Five Minute Friday. I adore the community of writers who show-up each week to write on the same one-word prompt.  It is always so neat to see the different interpretations of the prompt.  Consider joining us!

This week the word is:

Turn

Cool, crisp morning.  It is the first sign of the changing of the seasons.  Then slowly it happens.

The leaves turn.  Oh, the glorious colors of fall and all the splendor that comes with the first rays of the morning light illuminating the various hues.

But it is short lived.  The tree releases the leaves and the seasons change once again.

I share a lot about honoring the season that you find yourself in.  And I now am about to enter a new season.  I have worked part-time for the past six and half years teaching in some capacity or another, but nothing steady or substantial.  My main focus has been my family and my ministries.  On Monday, I take a bigger step into entering the work force once again.  It will still be part-time, but I will have so much more responsibility than I have had in this past season of being a stay-at-home mom.

This act of obedience of walking out the journey God has for me requires sacrifice.  I have to assess what needs to be released in order to create margin in my life.  I won’t know for awhile, but I am in prayer about it.  It may mean stepping down from areas of ministry so that others can step up to be equipped.  We shall see.  It is so important to truly be faithful in this process though.

In her most recent book The Best Yes, Lysa Terkeurst talks about this process.  She described a tragic snowstorm that occurred in the Northeast a few years ago.  The leaves had not released their leaves and it the weight of the snow was too heavy.  Major damage resulted.

Here are the words that are echoing through my heart as I am considering these things:

“”The wind whips past her, trailing in a whisper, ‘R-e-l-e-a-s-e’. She must listen or she will break.  Her tree needs to be stripped and prepared for winter. But she can’t embrace winter until she lets go of fall. Like a tree, a woman can’t carry the weight of two seasons simultaneously…No, release isn’t stealing  a thing from her…Release brings with it the gift of peace. The beautiful, bare branches can now receive its snow.” The Best Yes pgs 99-100

So as the leaves turn, I am preparing myself for the release.  My heart responds in obedience to the natural order.