To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven. (Ecclesiastes 3:1, NKJV)
Solomon is credited with having more wisdom than anyone else ever had. I especially like this passage that starts off with this verse. Over the next few weeks, I'll be talking about the different times in our lives.
There's one I don't think he mentioned, so I'm going to cover it here: There's a time for puberty, and a time to grow out of puberty. A writing friend, Jim Bettencourt, and I got to talking about that this morning.
When kids are approaching their teen years, puberty strikes and leaves everyone wondering what happened to that sweet-tempered, wonderful girl/boy who used to live in this house. Or, if you're the kid, you're wondering if you're going crazy.
When my kids were young, I went through this process with my daughter. She hit twelve and suddenly went from sweet kid to rebellious teen. Yes, she lived through it--and now she is again that sweet kid. Several years older and matured.
When our two boys were about that age, I sat them down one day to have a talk. I told them they would be experiencing all the joys and heartaches of puberty. Puberty works changes in bodies and emotions, totally different than anything they'd ever experienced before. I told them not to worry--it was okay. They were normal; in fact, the changes were a part of God's plan for them.
It wouldn't be long before they would be on their own. They would go from dependent on their parents for everything to being totally independent. With that comes that desire to make their own decisions. I told them we would allow that when their decisions were wise ones, but I asked them to trust us when we said, "No." Both their dad and I had been through the same things, so we would understand and try to guide them on the right path through the wilderness.
It made a difference--their passage through this time was much easier, at least on us. Teens need to know they are not bad for feeling the way they do. Parents need to know they haven't suddenly lost their touch with parenting.
For every thing under heaven, there is a time and a season. This too shall pass.
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