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Stepping Into a New Season
Life moves through seasons, spring's growth, summer's labor, fall's harvest, and winter's rest. But what happens when we lose our way between seasons? Pastor Bob Wright delivered an encouraging message reminding believers that God never abandons them when they drift off course. Anchoring his message in Galatians 6:9, Ecclesiastes 3:1, and John 15:4, Pastor Wright emphasized that the secret to navigating every season isn't the season itself, it's staying connected to Jesus Christ, the vine who sustains us through everything. In a memorable illustration, Pastor Wright compared the Holy Spirit to a GPS: when we miss a turn, the GPS doesn't panic or shut down, it quietly recalculates a new route. Likewise, God is always working out another path to get us back on track. Drawing on his 50 years of ministry, Pastor Wright challenged those enduring dry, discouraging seasons to move from survival-mode prayers to bold, faith-filled prayers, because God has already made a way into your next season. Your drought is ending. Step forward.
Related Sermons
Small Group Guide
Small Group Discussion Guide
"Stepping Into a New Season" | Pastor Bob Wright
1. SERMON RECAP
In this message, I shared how God has designed life to move through seasons — and that staying connected to Jesus is the secret to thriving in every one of them. Even when we wander off course or find ourselves in a dry, discouraging season, the Holy Spirit is constantly working to redirect us back to where we belong. God is faithful, and He is always preparing something brand new for those who keep their trust in Him.
2. KEY SCRIPTURE
John 15:4-5 (KJV) "Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing."
3. ICE BREAKER
What is your favorite natural season — spring, summer, fall, or winter — and what do you love most about it? Does it remind you of any particular season in your spiritual life?
4. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Getting Started I mentioned that life moves through seasons — spring (learning and growth), summer (labor and building), fall (harvest), and winter (rest and renewal). Which of those four seasons best describes where you feel you are right now spiritually? Why?
2. Digging Deeper In Galatians 6:9, Paul tells us "let us not be weary in well doing, for in due season we shall reap if we faint not." What do you think it practically looks like to "faint" in a season of waiting? Have you ever come close to giving up just before something broke open for you?
3. Going Further I used the image of a GPS that keeps recalculating even when you ignore it — comparing that to the Holy Spirit's work in our lives. Can you share a time when you felt God "recalculating" a route for you after you went your own way? What did that feel like in the moment versus looking back?
4. Getting Personal I described something called a "soul drought" — when your joy, peace, and expectation all feel dried up. Without oversharing anything you're not comfortable with, have you experienced a soul drought? What helped you — or is helping you — hold on during that time?
5. Challenge Question I said that "faith is always forward moving," and I pointed to examples like blind Bartimaeus, Joshua stepping into the Jordan, and Peter stepping out of the boat. What is one step toward what God has for you that you've been hesitating to take? What's been holding you back?
6. Bringing It Home Ecclesiastes 3:1 reminds us that "to everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven." How does trusting that God has a purpose in this season — not just after it — change the way you walk through a difficult or confusing time?
5. APPLICATION CHALLENGE
This week, write a bold prayer.
Find a quiet moment before Friday and write out a specific, forward-leaning prayer about one area of your life where you've been praying tired, survival-mode prayers. Make it bold — name what you're believing God for, declare it out loud, and keep that written prayer somewhere you'll see it every day this week. Share it with your group next meeting if you feel comfortable.
6. PRAYER POINTS
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For anyone in a dry season: Pray that God would renew their strength, restore their joy, and remind them that He has not forgotten them — that the rain is coming.
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For boldness in faith: Pray that each group member would find the courage to take one step forward this week toward what God has for them, trusting that the door will open as they move.
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For connection to the Vine: Pray that every person in the group would experience a deeper, more consistent abiding relationship with Jesus — especially in the moments when life feels uncertain or off-course.
7. MEMORY VERSE
Galatians 6:9 (KJV) "And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not."
Leader's Note: If your group has people who are clearly in a difficult season right now, leave extra time after the discussion questions for prayer. Sometimes the most powerful thing a small group can do is simply stop and pray specifically for one another. Don't rush past that moment if the Holy Spirit creates it.
Daily Devotional
Don't Quit Before the Harvest
Galatians 6:9 — "Let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not."
I know what it feels like to grow tired. Maybe you're doing all the right things — praying, showing up, believing — and still nothing seems to be moving. I want to encourage you this morning: you are not forgotten. God has a due season written over your life, and that word "due" means it's already been scheduled. It's already on heaven's calendar. The harvest isn't maybe coming — it's coming. The enemy's greatest weapon against you right now isn't a circumstance. It's exhaustion. He wants you to quit five minutes before your breakthrough. But I'm asking you today to hold on just a little longer. Stay faithful in the small things. Keep showing up. Keep sowing. Your season of reaping is closer than it feels. Don't let weariness rob you of what God has already promised.
Lord, I'm honest with You — I'm tired. But I choose today to trust Your timing over my feelings. Strengthen me to hold on and not quit before my harvest comes.
There's a Time for Everything
Ecclesiastes 3:1 — "To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven."
Life doesn't always move at the speed we want it to. I've learned — sometimes the hard way — that God structures our lives through seasons on purpose. There are seasons of learning, seasons of labor, seasons of harvest, and yes, even seasons of rest. The trouble is, most of us only want the harvest season. We resist the quiet winters, the slow springs, the uncertain falls. But every season has a purpose, and none of them are wasted in God's hands. If you're in a waiting season right now, you're not stuck — you're being prepared. If you're in a season of rest, you're not falling behind — you're being renewed. God designed each season to lead you into the next one. Trust the process. Trust the One who holds every season in His hands, because He knows exactly where you are and exactly where you're going.
Father, help me to stop fighting the season I'm in and start trusting You in it. Teach me to find Your purpose in every chapter of my life, even the quiet ones.
Stay Connected to the Vine
John 15:4 — "Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me."
I've noticed something over my 50 years of ministry — every time I've struggled, every time I've gone off course or found myself in a dry season, the root cause was the same: I'd loosened my connection to Jesus. Not dramatically. Not all at once. Just gradually, a little distance here, a little busyness there, until one day I looked around and wondered why things felt so barren. Jesus isn't being harsh when He says without Him we can do nothing. He's being honest and loving. He's reminding us that fruit doesn't come from striving — it comes from abiding. Staying close. Staying rooted. The secret to every good season in your life isn't strategy or effort alone — it's your connection to Christ. When you stay in Him, fruit comes naturally. When that connection weakens, everything dries up. Guard your abiding like your life depends on it — because spiritually, it does.
Jesus, I want to stay close to You today — not just when I need something, but because You are my source for everything. Help me to abide in You and not drift away.
God Is Working Out Another Route
Romans 8:28 — "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose."
Have you ever ignored the GPS and gone your own way, only to end up completely lost? I've done it more times than I care to admit — both in a car and in life. Here's what I love though: the GPS doesn't panic. It doesn't give up on you. It just quietly starts calculating a new route. That's exactly what the Holy Spirit does for us. When we've made wrong turns, when we've wandered off course or made decisions we regret, He doesn't abandon us. He starts working out another way to get us where we're supposed to be. God is not panicked by your detours. He's not shocked by your mistakes. He's already working all of it — the good decisions and the bad ones — together for your good. You haven't disqualified yourself from your destiny. You just need to let the Holy Spirit recalculate and be willing to follow His lead.
Lord, thank You for not giving up on me when I've gone my own way. I surrender my wrong turns to You today and trust You to recalculate my route back to Your plan.
Your Drought Is About to End
Isaiah 43:19 — "Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert."
I believe with everything in me that someone reading this today has been in a dry season for far too long. You've been praying, but heaven feels quiet. You've been believing, but nothing seems to be moving. You've been faithful, but you're emotionally exhausted. I want you to hear this directly from God's Word this morning: He is doing a new thing. Not eventually — now. It shall spring forth. He's not just making a path around your wilderness; He's making rivers right through it. He's bringing refreshing to the driest place in your life. Your soul drought is not your final chapter. Deep down beneath the surface, those roots are still reaching, still believing, still holding on. And when God's rain comes — and it will come — things will turn green faster than you can imagine. Step toward that open door today. Take that step of faith. Your new season is announcing itself.
Father, I receive Your promise of a new thing today. I choose to believe that my dry season is ending and that You are making rivers in my desert right now. Refresh me, Lord.