In Season and Out of Season
Posted in Patty's Posts 1 comments
"Preach the Word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke and exhort--with great patience and instruction" (2 Timothy 4:2).
What exactly does it mean to be prepared "in season and out of season"? We have all probably experienced situations where God opened wide the door to share the gospel with someone, and everything fell into place. That is what Timothy means by "in season" -- conditions are favorable rather than adverse.
"Out of season," then, is the opposite. It means when conditions are not favorable, when it may not be convenient for us, and when hindrances or even embarrassment may deter us from sharing the Word.
In a nutshell, being "in season" means making the most of every opportunity, as Paul exhorts us to do in Ephesians 5:16. It means not compartmentalizing our time into "spiritual" and "non-spiritual." It means being available to God 24/7. There are set times for worship and fellowship, but we must be available for God to use us outside of scheduled times of ministry.
When you're in the grocery line and the cashier appears harried, take the time to smile and ask her how she's doing. If God awakens you in the middle of the night, take the opportunity to pray, instead of being annoyed at being awakened. When you've just put your pajamas on and get a call that someone in your church is in the hospital, don't begrudge having to dress again and drive to the hospital so you can pray with them.
We must never forget that we are not our own; we were bought with the precious blood of Jesus. Our own convenience must be sacrificed on the altar of His eternal purposes.
1 comments:
I like this a lot Patty! It really made me think today. I think you could go even further with the meaning of in and out of season, or maybe I mean that it could go in more directions. When I read that verse, one of the first things that comes to mind is a metaphorical field and harvest. In that sense, in season would likely be harvest time when we need to reap the harvest by bringing people to Christ and out of season would be the time to plow the field and plant the seeds by preparing people to get to the point of accepting Christ. Each requires its own approach and we need to "be ready."
And the other way I view in and out of season is more closely to what you mentioned. In short, in season would mean that conditions are favorable and out of season would mean that conditions are not favorable. This is also something we need to "be ready" for.
Great post! Thanks for sharing!
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