Last Updated on July 10, 2024
How do you know when God is bringing you into a new season? And how can you find the peace and trust to know that He will take care of you wherever He leads? Here’s one mom’s story of how the Lord is helping her to learn just that.
I think most of us welcome the start of new seasons, especially when it’s the first signs of spring after a long winter or the beginning of a new school year after your kids have caused havoc on your home all summer. (Anyone else?)
But if you’re like me, you’re a lot more resistant to new seasons in your personal life.
Sometimes that looks like a friendship that changes and later comes to an end.
Sometimes that looks like your child growing up and wanting to spend less time with you.
And sometimes that looks like a job ending, losing an opportunity, or having to move away from a place where you’ve grown comfortable.
Most of these things aren’t fun per se. In fact, they’re often painful, disconcerting, and they leave you feeling unsteady and uncertain of the ground you’re standing on.
But if you’re feeling uncertain in an area of your life right now, God might be leading you into a new season.
Trusting God with the unexpected
I’ll never forget one unexpected shift that happened in our own family, almost 5 years ago. I was the mom of a 2-year-old boy in the throes of the full-on terrible twos.
I had given up my career to be home (my idea) and found myself living in an almost constant state of anxiety and depression. Who was I without a career? Without a community and a place that I belonged?
Then, when I was 6 months pregnant with our second child, my husband got a call about a job opportunity—7 hours away from where we lived.
Of course, the answer was no.
We’d lived in Tennessee for 10 years, and we specifically chose that place for our careers and the dreams that we had. Our family and friends were there.
We were asked again and said no again.
And then, quietly, almost in a whisper, we felt God saying, “GO.”
And go we did.
With a whole lot of uncertainty, not really knowing anyone, and my huge pregnant belly, we took a moving truck to a new place we had only visited once and planted roots.
What we didn’t know when we finally said “Yes” was that the COVID-19 pandemic would happen only two months later.
And when the world shut down, we would find that God had planted us in one of the most supportive, helpful, and encouraging communities of people we could have asked for.
God was planting us as seeds so our roots could begin to grow for the season ahead.
The process wasn’t always fun, and there have been months and weeks of doubt, but ultimately, I can look back today with total certainty and know that God was bringing us into a new season that was better than the one before.
How to know when God is leading you into a new season
Do you feel like God might be guiding or leading you into a new season in your life?
Maybe you’re feeling called to serve at your church, reach out to someone in your community in need, or walk into a new season spiritually.
When God is bringing you into a new season, scripture is one of the most important things to latch on to, as is spending the time to get still and listen to God’s voice.
Here are four signs that God might be moving you in a new direction:
1. The Holy Spirit starts to show you something new.
Whether it’s through reading God’s Word, conversations with a friend, or quiet times with the Lord, you might notice the same topics or lessons starting to come up again and again. The Spirit of God will often gently nudge us like this, whether it’s through our time in God’s presence or even just as we’re living our daily lives. This is why it’s so important to stay in tune with the Spirit and stay active in reading the Word of God.
2. You find yourself dwelling on a past season of your life.
Because we’re humans, it’s natural for us to find it difficult to let go of things that have happened in previous seasons of our lives. But we have to remember that the Lord has good things ahead for us in the next season, too! If you find yourself dwelling on the past and dreading the future, it’s probably a sign that the Lord is calling you out of your comfort zone and into new levels of trusting Him.
3. God begins to open unexpected doors.
God’s plans are so much bigger than ours, and He has a bigger picture that we can’t see yet. So whether he brings a new friend into your life or an unexpected situation that you didn’t see coming, you can trust that each new thing that comes into your life has first passed through your Heavenly Father. He has His own way of doing things that we don’t always understand, but we can always trust Him for the next step.
4. You find yourself facing a new challenge with no clear answers.
No one wants bad things to happen in their lives, and when difficult things do happen, it can be easy for us to lose sight of God’s promise over our lives. But in dry seasons or when you are facing heavy, uncomfortable things, God is usually preparing to do some work on you or in your life. New challenges aren’t something we have to be afraid of. Difficult times usually come before the birth of something new.
12 Bible verses for new seasons
Are you excited, terrified, or feeling a little of both as you enter a new season of life? Here’s a reminder that even in the middle of the unknown, you are not alone.
Jesus Christ already went before you and is preparing a way for you, even though the details may seem uncertain. He’s got you. He’s with you. Just trust, walk, and obey.
Here are a few words of encouragement for new seasons…
“Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.” – Psalm 1:1-3
“There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under the heavens.” – Ecclesiastes 3:1
“Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth; do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” – Isaiah 43:18–19
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” – Jeremiah 29:11
“He changes times and seasons; he deposes kings and raises up others. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning.” – Daniel 2:21
“And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine will burst the wineskins and be spilled, and the wineskins will be ruined. But new wine must be put into new wineskins, and both are preserved.” – Luke 5:37–38
“Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.” – James 5:7-8
“The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” – Lamentations 3:22–23
“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap if we do not give up.” – Galatians 6:9
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” —Romans 15:13
“But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” —Isaiah 40:31
“The Lord will indeed give what is good, and our land will yield its harvest. Righteousness goes before him and prepares the way for his steps.” – Psalm 85:12–13
Encouragement for new things
If you feel God leading you to do something new or taking you somewhere outside of your comfort zone, don’t fight where he’s leading!
I think a lot about the story of Jonah, when God called him to the city of Ninevah to witness to the people there. He knew their reputation and what Ninevah was like, and he decided he wanted no part in it.
He would do things in his own time. But for everyone who knows the story of Jonah and the whale, we knew that God wasn’t going to let it end like that.
(Read the book of Jonah to see how THAT story goes.)
When Jonah found himself in the literal belly of a whale, God gave him another chance to accept his new season and the new thing that God was calling him to.
Conclusion
The will of God is not always easy. It’s usually not comfortable. BUT our God will be with you every step of the way. When He takes you on a new path, He won’t force you to do it on your own.
Trust God, listen to His voice, and be willing to let go of control when you’re in a season that you don’t understand.
When I think back on the old things, places, and people in my life that I tried so desperately to cling to, I can see marks of how God often had to remove those things during a time of transition.
And sometimes it hurt; a lot of times it didn’t make sense until I saw things from the other side. Maybe you’re experiencing the same thing right now!
Whatever new season or life changes the Lord is calling you into, I pray that you will find the peace of God and let God’s timing lead you. Because no matter what, He can ALWAYS be trusted.
