Seasons Change

Some seasons in life are longer than others, and we don’t always know when one season will end and a new one will begin.  However, we have to be able to recognize and discern when something’s time has passed and be able to move into the next season, no matter how difficult moving on might be.  Each season prepares you for the next…  Each season serves its purpose…

We thought our season here at the Footprints base was going to last longer, but the Lord is leading our family to move off base.  In fact, we are moving tomorrow, January 1, 2015, back to Pretoria to stay at our friends’ house (Fred and Rene), whom we stayed with when we first moved to Africa.  We do not know how long we will be in Pretoria, but they have been so gracious to us and are letting us stay there as long as we need to until the Lord gives us clear direction for the next steps.

The reason for the move, you might ask…..  Well, sometime in October the Lord had been showing me some things, but we placed them on the back burner so-to-speak because we didn’t know the significance of those things at the time until now.  We thought we’d be leading the Footprints’ children’s school for another year.  We thought we’d be building a home on the base and bringing more children into our family – a few that were really highlighted to us already.  We thought many things were going to happen, but the internal checks continued to happen and the Lord began closing doors.  At this point, we knew we had to revisit the things the Lord had been speaking to me about and showing me.  This meant humbling ourselves before the Lord and the director at Footprints.  Our hearts meant well, but the Lord was telling us to slow down our steps so that we did not get ahead of Him and what He has planned for us.  We’ve learned many lessons here, for which we are grateful.  We’ve met some wonderful people, of which we hope we can stay connected with.  Our unity has been tested, but we have remained victorious over the enemy’s tactics!

One day as I was seeking the Lord for guidance, He spoke to my heart saying, “Ask your kids how they’re doing.  It will be key to your next step.”  We ask our kids often how they’re doing, but Holy Spirit gave me strategies to help me dive deeper into their hearts.  A common thing that was shared by all of them was, “We miss family time.”  We have enjoyed our time here at Footprints, but community living doesn’t come without its challenges.  I felt prompted to have some people pray for our family over a 2-day period (not sharing any details with them about certain situations) and to share anything with us that the Lord might be showing them on behalf of our family.  A friend of ours shared a couple of things with us, and one of those things was that she kept hearing the words, “Listen to the kids,” throughout her prayer time.  This lined up with what God had been speaking to me about, so I knew there was something more to it and God was trying to get my attention about something.  I am so thankful for friends that clearly hear the voice of the Lord and are an encouragement to us!  A love shout out to you all!  As I was typing out an e-mail to another one of my friends, the Lord spoke to me through my own writing confirming what our next step should be.

Through much conversation and prayer, Josh and I were led to make certain decisions on behalf of our family, but we wanted the blessing of leadership here at Footprints as that would be the honorable thing to do.  About 2 weeks ago we met with the director and received her full blessing to move forward with the direction the Lord was leading us, which is to move off base.  What’s really cool is that the night before we met with the director, the Lord gave her a dream about me and our kids.  I won’t share the details but it correlated with what was going on in my spirit for our family.  God’s so good!!  The Lord has made it very clear that this next season of ministry is all about our kids and strengthening our family unit.  We are called to make disciples, and that definitely starts in the home.  Don’t get us wrong, family is always ministry for us so this is nothing new, but the Lord is asking us to set aside all other “good” opportunities to go deeper into the Lord’s heart as a family during the month of January….no one being left behind.  We sense it is in preparation for us and what is to come for our family.  He wants to toughen up our army for the front line.  My heart is that as a family our intimacy with the Lord will become stronger and that a lifestyle of worship and prayer will become a greater focus for each of us individually and as a family unit.  So, if you don’t see us post much on Facebook or write any updates for a few weeks, it’s because we’re dedicating this next month to really focus on the Lord and grow more intimate with Him as a family.

In the meantime, God put a place on Josh’s heart, and right now we’re praying into the meaning of it and if it’s somewhere He wants us to visit.  Josh had never heard of this place before, nor do we know anyone that lives there or has been there.  We’ve taken the first step to inquire of this location, and now we’re just waiting to see if the door remains opened or closed.  Please join us in prayer that we would have an answer by January 7th.

I want to “sign-out” with this verse: Psalm 1:3

“They (the faithful) are like trees planted along the riverbank,

bearing fruit each season without fail.

Their leaves never wither, and in all they do, they prosper.”

For those that are faithfully following Jesus, this says there is NO season that doesn’t produce fruit.  If you are going through a season and questioning whether or not there is any fruit, ask the Lord to show you His perspective because He’s always at work growing something beautiful in you, BUT you must stay connected to Him for it to grow.  Let Him be your source of nourishment and the center of your heart!

With the new year upon us, we’re excited for what God has in store for the Mason Family in 2015, but we’re taking it one day at a time and choosing life today and not worrying about tomorrow.  We pray that all of you will experience freedom, love, hope and joy beyond measure during the year 2015.  Happy New Year from the Masons!