The 1st son went in the winter,
The 2nd in the spring,
The 3rd in summer,
The 4th son in the fall.
When they had all gone and came back, he called them together to describe what they had seen.
The 1st son said that the tree was ugly, bent, and twisted.
The 2nd son said no it was covered with green buds and full of promise.
The 3rd son disagreed; he said it was laden with blossoms that smelled so sweet and looked so beautiful, it was the most graceful thing he had ever seen.
The 4th son disagreed with all of them; he said it was ripe and drooping with fruit, full of life and fulfillment.
The man then explained to his sons that they were all right, because they had each seen but only one season in the tree's life.
He told them that you cannot judge a tree, or a person, by only one season, and that the essence of who they are and the pain, sorrow, failings, pleasure, joy, fulfilment and love that come from that life can only be measured at the end, when all the seasons are up.
If you give up when it's cold winter, you will miss the promise of your spring, the beauty of your summer, fulfillment of your fall.
Don't let the pain of one season destroy the joy of all the rest.
Don't judge life by one difficult season.
Persevere through the difficult patches and better times are sure to come some time or later.
Above all, God doesn't judge us by a snapshot moment to determine what kind of child we are, but by the sum total of all these snapshots that He has taken over the years.
When we finally see the snapshots, would we see our progression to become His intended useful vessel?
May all our photos and portraits, through the many seasons, include Christ in all that we do.
