It was a dreary day during the first week of December, and I was busy putting the finishing touches on my Christmas decorations. I stepped onto the front porch to adjust my wreath and saw something shocking.
One of my azalea bushes sported a single red flower. As I stepped closer to inspect the bush, my mind quickly calculated the months until blooming season—three to four months away. I blinked my eyes, thinking I was mistaken and something red was caught on the branch. But sure enough, there it was in all its glory. One magnificent bloom. Out of season. The sight of something so beautiful and unexpected brightened my day and made me smile.
The Bible tells us to be ready in season and out of season. This statement makes me wonder how ready I am to follow God’s leading and be a blessing to others—in season and out. When it’s convenient and when it’s not. Whether I’m prepared or whether I’m not. When I’m expecting it and when I’m not.
Another Scripture (Proverbs 25:11) says, A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver. What a perfect picture of words of blessing spoken to the right person at just the right time and in the right circumstance.
The word fitly means proper, appropriate, and suitable. In other words … in season.
The holidays provide the best opportunity to practice this gift of blessing others with our time, our love, and our words. Hearts are open and more ready to receive than at any other time of the year. So, let’s be like my Christmas azalea and proudly let the light of Jesus shine through us as never before. His love is never out of season.
(Photo courtesy of morguefile and Ponx.)
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Andrea Merrell is an award-winning author and professional freelance editor. She is an associate editor with Christian Devotions Ministries and was a finalist for the 2016 Editor of the Year Award at BRMCWC and the 2018 Excellence in Editing award by the Christian Editors Network. Andrea is a graduate of Christian Communicators and was a finalist in the 2015 USA Best Book Awards and the 2018 Selah Awards, as well as a semi-finalist in the 2018 ACFW Genesis contest. She has been published in numerous anthologies and online venues, teaches workshops on writing and editing, and is the co-founder and regular contributor to www.TheWriteEditing.com, a blog designed specifically for writers. Andrea is the author of Murder of a Manuscript, Praying for the Prodigal, and Marriage: Make It or Break It. Contact her at www.AndreaMerrell.com.