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I  often find myself in circumstances where I may be “planted” for a short while. Sometimes we are “planted” at a particular job or in a particular relationship. Sometimes it’s where we live or maybe during a specific period in our lives. In Ecclesiastes Chapter 3, the bible speaks of there being a “season” for many things. A time for birth, a time for death. A time for loss, a time for gain. A time for grief, a time for joy. All of these are seasons of life we go through just like the places and people we are with at times in our lives.

The question becomes “what are we doing during those seasons, times and circumstances?” I remember the phrase “bloom where you are planted.” The most common definition of this phrase I could find reads as follows: a person should take advantage of the opportunities they have in their life and be grateful for the present situation.

We are “planted” at different times in some situations or seasons that we don’t actually want to be in, but that doesn’t mean we can’t make the most of it. Maybe take away from it and learn and grow from it what you can. Maybe make the situation better as you are in it. Maybe leave the season or the situation better than when you found it. The bottom line is that if we are in Christ and Christ is in us we can have joy and peace and hope in our current circumstances regardless of what those circumstances are. It’s not always fun. It’s not always what we want. It doesn’t mean we have to like it. But we can in fact continue in peace and joy through it.

Grief, loss, unemployment, relationship issues, personal health issues, the list can continue, but all of those circumstances change. What doesn’t change is hope, faith, love, peace and joy. God is consistent, his promises are consistent, Christ remains faithful, and these are constants, not variables that remain the same.

Paul writes in Philippians Chapter 4, verses 11-13 about having this knowledge and taking rest in this knowledge when he says the following:

I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

It is my hope that regardless of where you find yourself in life, you can take comfort in knowing that you are not alone, there is a purpose for you being there, and that you can in fact grow, learn and prosper during that season and after that season has passed. Bloom where you are planted.

Rev. Barry Vassar is pastor at Fitzgerald Memorial Baptist. He can be reached at fitzgeraldmemorial@gmail.com.