{"id":45242,"date":"2020-12-28T22:40:43","date_gmt":"2020-12-28T19:40:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wingulamashahidi.org\/?p=45242"},"modified":"2025-05-10T10:35:22","modified_gmt":"2025-05-10T07:35:22","slug":"when-god-moves-you-understanding-seasons-of-change-in-the-christian-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wingulamashahidi.org\/en\/2020\/12\/28\/when-god-moves-you-understanding-seasons-of-change-in-the-christian-life\/","title":{"rendered":"WHEN GOD MOVES YOU: UNDERSTANDING SEASONS OF CHANGE IN THE CHRISTIAN LIFE"},"content":{"rendered":"

As followers of Christ, we must come to terms with a profound truth: <\/span>God does not intend for us to stay in the same spiritual stage forever.<\/strong> He is always at work, shaping us to become more like Christ (Romans 8:29<\/strong>), and that means He will take us through different seasons\u2014some comforting, others stretching.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Story of Elijah: A Shift in Provision<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Let\u2019s look at the prophet Elijah during the drought in Israel (1 Kings 17). When God shut the heavens so that it wouldn\u2019t rain, He led Elijah to the Brook Kerith<\/strong> and commanded ravens to feed him.<\/p>\n

1 Kings 17:4\u20136\u00a0<\/strong>
\n\u201cYou will drink from the brook, and I have directed the ravens to supply you with food there.\u201d
\n\u201cThe ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This was a miraculous season of divine provision\u2014a symbol of God\u2019s grace and care<\/strong>. But that season ended:<\/p>\n

1 Kings 17:7\u00a0<\/strong>
\n\u201cSome time later the brook dried up because there had been no rain in the land.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Elijah didn\u2019t do anything wrong\u2014the brook dried up as part of God\u2019s greater plan. If Elijah had stayed there, waiting for the water to return, he would have missed what came next.<\/p>\n

Instead, God gave him new instructions:<\/p>\n

1 Kings 17:8\u20139\u00a0<\/strong>
\n\u201cThen the word of the Lord came to him: \u2018Go at once to Zarephath in the region of Sidon and stay there. I have directed a widow there to supply you with food.\u2019\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The same God who fed him through ravens now fed him through a widow. The method changed<\/strong>, but the faithfulness of God remained<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

1: God<\/span> Trains<\/span> Through<\/span> Seasons<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Sanctification<\/strong>\u2014the process of becoming holy\u2014is often done through stages. Just as students graduate from one class to the next, God trains His children through different \u201cspiritual classrooms\u201d (Philippians 1:6).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

You may feel like God was closer when you were first saved. In the beginning, His grace may have felt almost tangible, like Elijah\u2019s daily bread from ravens. But then comes a time when that ease fades. The \u201cbrook\u201d dries up.<\/p>\n

This does not mean God has abandoned you. It means He\u2019s calling you to maturity<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Hebrews 5:14\u00a0<\/strong>
\n\u201cBut solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\n

2: God’s Silence Can Signal Movement, Not Abandonment<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Sometimes when we no longer feel the same emotional highs or clear answers, we assume God has left. But just as a teacher is often silent during a test, God\u2019s silence may be a sign that it\u2019s time to walk by faith, not by sight<\/strong> (2 Corinthians 5:7).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\n

3: God Calls You to Be a Giver, Not Just a Receiver<\/strong><\/h3>\n

In earlier stages, God may feed you directly. But in maturity, He may call you to feed others<\/strong>. Like Elijah, you may move from being provided for to being part of someone else’s miracle.<\/p>\n

Hebrews 6:1\u00a0<\/strong>
\n\u201cTherefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity\u2026\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This might mean being relocated, facing new challenges, or having to create fresh spiritual routines. It may feel uncomfortable, but it\u2019s not abandonment\u2014it\u2019s God equipping you for more<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\n

How to Respond When the Brook Dries Up<\/strong><\/h3>\n
    \n
  1. Don\u2019t panic.<\/strong> Recognize it as a shift, not a punishment.<\/li>\n
  2. Stay prayerful.<\/strong> Wait for the next instruction, just like Elijah did.<\/li>\n
  3. Be obedient.<\/strong> When God opens a new door, walk through it.<\/li>\n
  4. Don\u2019t cling to the past.<\/strong> The grace for that season has served its purpose.<\/li>\n
  5. Trust His presence.<\/strong> The same God who was with you before is with you now.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Isaiah 43:19\u00a0<\/strong>
    \n\u201cSee, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

    \n

    Final Encouragement<\/strong><\/h3>\n

    If you\u2019re in a season where things feel different\u2014where spiritual nourishment doesn\u2019t come as easily, or you\u2019re in a new place of responsibility\u2014don\u2019t be discouraged. God is not taking away your blessings; He\u2019s changing the form through which they come<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

    Elijah still received God\u2019s provision, just in a new way. The same God who walked with you in the early days of your faith is walking with you now\u2014just teaching you new lessons.<\/p>\n

    Philippians 1:6\u00a0<\/strong>
    \n\u201c\u2026being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

    So walk boldly. Embrace the season. Grow in grace. God is with you.<\/strong><\/p>\n

    May the Lord bless and sustain you.<\/strong><\/p>\n