Susie and pastor Mark Buchanan, author of Spiritual Rhythm, examine replacing our spirituality of busyness with a spirituality of abiding as we go through the natural ups and downs of faith.

“Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:5

Yet, too often we forget that fruit needs different seasons in order to grow. We measure our spiritual maturity by how much we do rather than how we are responding to our current spiritual season.

A winter season of spirituality can be difficult to navigate through. Feeling abandoned by God is hard but it does not last. Such feelings don’t make people bad Christians. Psalms of lament and more point to times in the Bible where the people of God felt pain and difficulty. 

Susie and Mark talk about the unique obedience Christians are called to in each season. he thinks that in Evangelical Christianity people often measure maturity by busyness. In certain seasons of spirituality, busyness may actually be the problem.

Those walking through the winter may feel that they don’t have much to give, but their worth and maturity is not dependent upon what they can give during that time.

Mark continues the biblical comparison between our lives and fruit trees.

“Jesus’ measure of maturity is fruit, the Bible’s measure of maturity is fruit, over and over again…. fruit trees only produce fruit in one season, but every season is necessary for the life cycle of the tree.”

Thus it’s important for Christians to understand that believers will go through season of life and season of faith. These seasons aren’t bad, they don’t highlight a weakness or a sin. Rather they allow us to thrive and produce fruit in the proper time. 

Key Scriptures: 2 Timothy 4:1-2, Matthew 11:28, John 15:5

Spiritual rhythm