Go to the ant, you lazybones; consider its ways, and be wise. Without having any chief or officer or ruler, it prepares its food in Summer, and gathers its sustenance in harvest.

Proverbs 6:6-8

Instructed here to look to the ant for wisdom, we are given an important lesson through the tiny creature’s diligence. The ant works hard to store up food for its colony. The formations of ants we see marching up our walls and across our table tops are on a mission to bring back as many supplies to their colony as they can.

What has stood out to me this last week though is that the author places the ants activity timewise in the Summer and in the harvest. Is this a picture of a forgotten way of life?

The natural order of things is to work to prepare for the coming of Winter. Planting in Spring, Harvesting in Summer, Storing in Autumn and Resting in Winter.

Hang on?

Resting, in Winter?

Yes, that’s right. If we have prepared well, Winter, with its shorter days, and colder weather is the natural time to hole up inside and keep warm and well fed. This isn’t possible though if we have not prepared, if we have not gathered in the harvest and stored up supplies like firewood in advance.

In today’s world we have a leisure and entertainment focus which is, to say the least, unnatural. The natural order is disturbed as we spend our Summers relaxing and seeking out fun activities. So when Winter comes we are unprepared for the shorter days and the wetter, colder weather. Even though we know it is going to happen every year at the same time every year we are distracted and we end up spending the Winter trying to find supplies in the worst time of year to be doing it!

Ok, now I know life is different in today’s modern world, I understand that for many people Summer is the best time to take their holidays, in fact many workplaces expect people to take their holidays then. Life is different, getting food for some is as easy as calling the delivery person, heating is as easy as remembering to pay the electricity and gas bills. The truth in the developed world at least, is that today’s modern world cocoons us from the natural patterns of the seasons.

However, then… there is the spiritual realm and the spiritual seasons of our lives. Being cocooned from seasons in the natural, we fail to understand the nature of seasons altogether. We neglect the fact that there is going to be Winter and Summer, Spring and Autumn. The comforts of modern life, might be able to spare us experiencing the elemental aspects of a natural Winter, but they cannot spare us from experiencing the elemental aspects of a spiritual Winter.

In a spiritual Summer, things feel like they are coming together, there is a sense of easiness to things, church is good, friends are close and maybe even actively encouraging us. We feel like and appear to be prospering. In a spiritual Winter, things feel more difficult, sometimes even foreboding, weariness is present and, for many a sense of isolation kicks in.

Just as in the natural the Winter season is the time to rest, in the spiritual Winter season it is the time to rest, the time to stay in one place, avoid major life decisions, review the encouragements of Summer, and simply let God minister to you.

In your spiritual Winter read the Bible, walk with God, listen to the Spirit and allow your heart to mourn for the sad things in life so that the Son has an opportunity to uplift you. Our Lord Jesus Christ understands sorrow, he is acquainted with grief and as such he is able to connect with those who mourn (Isaiah 53:3). In these times he can encourage us gently as one who shares our experiences and emotions, and as one who has suffered much.

This process of resting and healing in God through a spiritual Winter will be a lot more successful if you have prepared for it. Preparing for a spiritual Winter, is often the hardest part, it involves strategically using the other spiritual seasons appropriately.

In your spiritual Springtime, sow seeds by reading the Word of God and praying about the things God showed you in the preceding Winter. Start the projects the Lord has laid on your heart, dig into and research those interest areas that make you a unique child of God.

In your spiritual Summer, take time to be with others, share what the Lord has laid on your heart. But, continue to dig deeper into the Word, this is when you will find yourself unearthing the fruit of those seeds you sowed in your spiritual Springtime! Pray, read the word and seek out genuine prophecies and reports of God’s activity around the globe. Allow yourself to be encouraged with the many testimonies of what God is doing in this world.

In your spiritual Autumn, start to store up the things God has shown you, prepare your heart for time alone with God. Allow the Lord to have his way, this is the natural progression into your spiritual Winter. Often spiritual Autumn is about accepting that there are things that you cannot change, there are things that happen that are painful, there are things that God allows which we cannot understand. These are the precursors announcing that your spiritual Winter is coming, that it is time for God to draw you in and minister to you, if you will let him.