Bloom Fully in His Timing 🌸
Let’s bloom fully in His timing and for His glory.
This is Part 4 of the Bloom Fully Series, originally published in the Sustain Newsletter.
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👉 If you missed the earlier parts of this series, you can catch up here: Part 1 , Part 2 and Part 3.
Anticipating Spring
Last time, we talked about what it looks like to lean into the Lord and experience healthy growth through trials and seasons of waiting.
One basic fact about times of waiting and suffering is that they always feel too long. It can seem like the season will never change. And because we often don’t realize how much we’re growing until later, it can feel as if nothing is happening at all.
But today, I want to declare this truth over you:
When we wait on the Lord and lean into Him in trust, the season will change in His way and His time—sometimes in our circumstances, sometimes in our hearts. One way or another, He will bring new life, growth, and purpose from this season of waiting.
“All who wait for him in faith will be blessed” – Isaiah 30:18
I recently came through a long season of waiting—one that included difficult trials I never would have chosen. In the thick of it, I wondered if I would ever reach the other side. It was during that time that my counselor and mentor spoke these words of hope over me: “There are springtimes in life.”
Those words helped me to keep moving forward. And now, by God's grace, a season of springtime and blooming has come in my life.
So today, I want to pass that encouragement to you:
🌱 There are springtimes in life.
The barrenness of winter is not the end. Even when it seems like everything has been still and silent, God has been working beneath the surface all along.
🌷 Getting Ready for Spring 🌷
Now that we’ve reassured ourselves that winter won't last forever, how do we make sure that we are ready for spring?
You might be thinking: Are you kidding? I was ready a long time ago!
But wanting the season to change and being ready to step into a new season are not the same thing.
Keep Your Ears Tuned to the Lord
If you've been waiting on the Lord in the way we discussed in the last newsletter, you’ve likely already been listening for His voice. But here’s a gentle caution:
❗ Don’t let the length or the perceived stillness of a winter season lull you into inattention. Even when you don’t see it, things are happening beneath the surface.
Take a posture of listening:
🔹 As you read Scripture
🔹 In moments of stillness
🔹 As you go about your day
Even when you don’t feel like you’re hearing anything, positioning your heart in attention to Him is never in vain. He delights in our trust and focus on Him, and He is working in us even when we can't see it yet.
Be Ready to Move When He Calls
It can be very tempting to try to rush through seasons that are long and difficult. As James tells us:
“Don't try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way.”
– James 1:4 MSG
Trying to rush through a trial or a season of waiting doesn’t work—and it isn’t what’s best for us.
What we can do is seek to align our hearts with what He is doing in this season, rather than clinging to the hurts—or even the blessings—of past ones. As we do this, we prepare ourselves to move forward with Him when the time comes.
🏃♀️ Let’s position our hearts to step forward in obedience when He gives the word. Listening for His voice and leaning into the work He is doing help us to recognize when He is bringing about a shift in our lives and when it’s time to take a new step of faith.
Move in His Strength, Not Your Own
When the Lord says to move, go!
But remember: We go in His strength and at His pace, not our own.
❌ Don’t squander the hard-earned wisdom you gained in the waiting.
✅ Stay in the humility and dependence on Him that you cultivated during the trials.
Our goal is to stay in step with Him. We aren’t racing anyone, and the pressure isn’t on us. Our only job is to walk beside Him in obedience.
If He is calling you into something new, don’t be afraid to step forward and work hard when the time comes. But if you ever catch yourself striving in your own strength, take a deep breath.
Pause. Recenter. Lean back into Him. That’s where your peace is. That’s where good fruit comes from.
Blooming Fully for His Glory
When it’s finally time to move—or, returning to our springtime flower metaphor, to bloom—don’t shrink back.
As we discussed in Part 1 of this series, it is not self-centered or arrogant to grow when you are abiding in Him. If you’ve entrusted yourself to His process, it’s safe to bloom.
🌿 Here’s why:
Through the trials and waiting, the Lord has tenderly nurtured and grown you. It is His work that is bringing about good fruit in your life.
He has built in you a strong foundation of trust and dependence on Him. That is a firm place to take your next step.
He has prepared your character for what He’s calling you to steward. Your motives have been purified through the fire.
The timing of your growth has been set by Him, not you. That means you can trust He’s prepared you to walk with Him into whatever is next.
Your growth brings Him glory and serves His purposes—because it’s rooted in and sustained by Him. When we grow in submission to Him, we reveal His goodness and His nature.
Now, the best way to honor all of this intentional care from the Lord is to bloom fully—just like a spring flower blooms in its time.
Step forward boldly into what He has for you, because He is trustworthy. He will carry you through the challenges of this new season just as He carried you through the last one.
He is faithful. And as for us, our heart posture remains the same:
We lean into Him in trust—every step of the way.
Rejoice! 🎉
Once you’ve finally made it through the winter season, take the time to rejoice! Hallelujah—thank You, Lord!
Here is what's true:
✨ He has been faithful to bring you through.
✨ You now carry a new testimony of His faithfulness.
Let’s take a cue from Moses, Miriam and the rest of the Israelites who responded with a song of joy and praise when the Lord brought them safely through the Red Sea:
“I will sing to the Lord, for he is highly exalted.
Both horse and driver he has hurled into the sea.
The Lord is my strength and defense;
he has become my salvation.
He is my God, and I will praise him,
my father’s God, and I will exalt him.”
— Exodus 15:1-2
Miriam grabbed a tambourine and led the women in dance. They didn’t rush past the moment—they celebrated the Lord's faithfulness to deliver them.
Let’s do the same.
Don’t rush past the moment of fulfillment trying to race ahead. Instead, take time to rejoice with Him in all He has done. Enjoy sweet moments of gratitude in His presence.
He is good.
He keeps His promises.
Worship Him. Give thanks. Enjoy this beautiful moment. 💛
A Prayer for the Week Ahead
Lord, whether we are in a winter season or a season of blooming, You are faithful. Grant that we may remain deeply rooted in Your love and that our growth may be a living testimony of Your tender care, Your love and Your great faithfulness. May we be a planting for the display of Your splendor (Isaiah 61:3). You are worthy of our whole selves—shape us and our lives to bring You glory. In Jesus Name, Amen.
That's a Wrap!
Thank you for joining me for this series!
Together, we’ve journeyed through what it means to pursue Christ-centered growth— not plowing ahead in our own strength, nor shrinking back in false humility.
We have anchored ourselves in the Lord’s unfailing love and unchanging character.
We’ve explored the need to wait on the Lord and the beauty of growing through seasons of trial.
And today, we’ve remembered this truth: He doesn't leave us stranded. Springtime does come.
When we grow and bloom fully—rooted in Him—our lives bring Him glory.
🌿 May you step confidently into what He has for you, always rooted in His love. 🌸
Your companion on the journey,
Nicole