Growing Through Every Season
Updated: Oct 2
Growing Through Every Season
Painting by: Vashti Graham
Batik Silk Art by: Nan Mangum
Artist Description:
A pomegranate tree can be a beautiful picture of the different seasons we go through in life. A pomegranate tree does not produce fruit all year long. It goes through seasons of resting, growing, blooming, and finally producing fruit. Every season has a purpose, even when we cannot see it yet.
In Numbers 13, Moses sent twelve spies into Canaan to explore the land God had promised to the Israelites. When the spies returned, they brought back grapes, figs, and pomegranates. The fruit was proof that the land really was as good and fruitful as God had promised. But there was a problem. Ten of the spies became more focused on the giants living in the land than on the fruit they were carrying. They were afraid of what could happen. Only Joshua and Caleb trusted that God would help them enter the land.
Think about that for a moment (the Israelites were holding proof of God’s goodness in their hands, but they were still afraid to move forward.) We can do the same thing. We may become so focused on the obstacles ahead that we overlook the reminders of God’s goodness already surrounding us.
Sometimes we become so focused on our problems that we forget about all the ways God has already been faithful to us. We may worry about what could go wrong instead of remembering what God has already brought us through.
The pomegranates brought back from Canaan were proof that the Promised Land was everything God said it would be, and what was waiting for the Israelites, but the people had to trust Him enough to enter it. Sometimes God allows us to see a glimpse of the fruit before we experience the fullness of His promise. It could be an answered prayer, a new opportunity, an encouraging conversation, or simply noticing that we are growing stronger. Those little moments can remind us, “God is still working.” Joshua and Caleb had to decide what they were going to focus on 1. the size of the giants or 2. the greatness of God. The giants did not make God’s promise disappear. In the same way, a difficult season does not mean God has forgotten about us.
Like Joshua and Caleb, we must decide whether we will be ruled by the size of our obstacles or strengthened by the faithfulness of our God. The presence of giants did not cancel God’s promise, just as a difficult season does not cancel His plan for our lives. The same God who produces fruit in the Promised Land is faithful to lead us through every wilderness we must cross to reach it.
Life is much the same. Some seasons feel full of possibility, like a tree covered in blossoms. Prayers are answered, opportunities open, and we can clearly see the fruit of our faithfulness. Other seasons feel quiet, uncertain, or even empty. The branches may appear bare, and nothing seems to be growing. Yet the pomegranate tree reminds us that visible fruit is only one part of the growth process. During winter, the tree may lose its leaves and appear lifeless, but beneath the ground, its roots remain alive. The tree is not dead; it is resting, conserving its strength, and preparing for what comes next. In the same way, the absence of visible progress does not mean God is absent or inactive. God often accomplishes some of His deepest work where no one else can see it. He may be strengthening our faith, transforming our hearts, healing old wounds, or preparing us for responsibilities we are not yet ready to carry. Roots must deepen before branches can safely hold an abundant harvest. A hidden season is never a wasted season.
“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.”-Ecclesiastes 3:1
The pomegranate carries rich meaning throughout Scripture. It appears in descriptions of the Promised Land, on the garments of the high priest, and within Solomon’s Temple. Its imagery is connected with God’s provision, holiness, worship, beauty, and fruitfulness. This teaches us that true prosperity is not simply having money, comfort, or popularity. True prosperity is becoming the person God created us to be and producing spiritual fruit that honors Him. The fruit of our lives (patience, kindness, courage, faithfulness, and self control) can become visible evidence of God’s presence within us.
A pomegranate tree does not apologize for losing its leaves in winter. It simply remains rooted until its season of fruitfulness returns. Christians should live with that same confidence. We should not abandon biblical convictions because culture changes or because remaining faithful becomes uncomfortable. Seasons change, political movements change, and popular opinions change, but God’s truth remains.
“The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.” Isaiah 40:8
You do not have to produce visible fruit in every season to remain firmly planted in God. Some seasons are for blossoming. Some are for harvesting. Some are for releasing what has ended. Others are for resting, healing, and growing deeper roots. Do not mistake a bare season for a barren life. Your circumstances may change with the seasons, but your foundation should remain secure. Stay rooted in Christ, stand firmly upon Scripture, and trust God to produce fruit through your faithfulness in His appointed time.
The same God who oversees the harvest is also present during the winter. He is with you in the wilderness, the growing season, and the harvest. A difficult season does not cancel His promises. In His perfect timing, what He has planted within you will blossom and bear fruit for His glory.
Scripture References:
Ecclesiastes 3:1 “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.”
Numbers 13:21-31 21 So they went up and explored the land from the Desert of Zin as far as Rehob, toward Lebo Hamath. 22 They went up through the Negev and came to Hebron, where Ahiman, Sheshai and Talmai, the descendants of Anak,lived. (Hebron had been built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 23 When they reached the Valley of Eshkol,[a] they cut off a branch bearing a single cluster of grapes. Two of them carried it on a pole between them, along with some pomegranates and figs. 24 That place was called the Valley of Eshkol because of the cluster of grapes the Israelites cut off there. 25 At the end of forty days they returned from exploring the land. 26 They came back to Moses and Aaron and the whole Israelite community at Kadesh in the Desert of Paran. There they reported to them and to the whole assembly and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 They gave Moses this account: “We went into the land to which you sent us, and it does flow with milk and honey! Here is its fruit. 28 But the people who live there are powerful, and the cities are fortified and very large. We even saw descendants of Anak there. 29 The Amalekites live in the Negev; the Hittites,Jebusites and Amorites live in the hill country; and the Canaanites live near the sea and along the Jordan.” 30 Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, “We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it.” 31 But the men who had gone up with him said, “We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.”
John 13:7 "You may not understand what I'm doing now, but someday you will."
Isaiah 40:8 “The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.”
Additional Facts You May Find Interesting:
Pomegranates have been around for thousands of years. Archaeologists have found pomegranate seeds at ancient sites in the same general region where many Bible stories took place. Some discoveries date back to around the time of the Bronze Age. This helps show that pomegranates were a real and common fruit in the ancient world.
In ancient times, pomegranates were often connected with abundance, beauty, and wealth. People used pomegranate shapes in jewelry, pottery, carvings, and decorations.
This helps us understand why pomegranates appear in important places in the Bible, including decorations on the high priest’s clothing and in Solomon’s Temple.
Pomegranates are mentioned several times in the Bible. In Deuteronomy 8:8, pomegranates are included in a list of important foods found in the Promised Land:
wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives, and honey. This helps us understand why bringing a pomegranate back from the Promised Land would have been a meaningful sign of the land's fruitfulness.
Pomegranate trees do not look the same all year. In many places, they lose their leaves during the colder months and become dormant. (Dormant means the tree takes a kind of rest from active growing.) The branches may look bare, but the tree is still alive.
This gives us a reminder for our own lives: just because we cannot see growth does not mean nothing is happening.
Sometimes a nearly ripe pomegranate can crack or split after changes in its water supply, such as heavy rain following dry conditions. (Think of it like suddenly giving the fruit more water than it can handle. The inside can grow faster than the outside, causing the skin to split.) This can become a spiritual reminder about the importance of steady nourishment. We should not wait until life becomes difficult to begin praying, reading Scripture, or strengthening our relationship with God. Just as plants need regular care, our faith needs regular attention.
Pomegranate trees can produce flowers that never become fruit. Some flowers naturally fall from the tree. That can remind us that not every beginning in our lives will turn into what we expected. A friendship may change. An opportunity may not work out. A plan may fail. But one flower falling does not mean the whole tree has failed.
The tree keeps growing.
You may have heard that every pomegranate has exactly 613 seeds. That is not scientifically true. Different pomegranates have different numbers of seeds.
The number 613 is important in Jewish tradition because it is traditionally associated with the commandments in the Torah. Over time, pomegranates became connected with this number. So, 613 seeds is a meaningful religious tradition, not a scientific fact.
The pomegranate is more than a beautiful fruit. Its history connects us with the ancient world of the Bible, and the way the tree grows can give us meaningful pictures of our own lives. 1. A tree can look bare and still be alive. 2. Not every flower has to become fruit for the tree to keep growing. 3. Fruit takes time to mature. 4. And a healthy tree needs steady nourishment. Different seasons may look different, but every season can be part of the growing process.
Symbolism in Nan's Batik Silk Artwork:
In Nan’s batik silk artwork, 12 pomegranate seeds represent Jesus’ 12 disciples and how faith can be planted and spread to others.
Golden bells were placed between pomegranates on the high priest’s robe. Their sound was heard as he entered the Holy Place, connecting the bells and pomegranates with worship, holiness, and serving in God’s presence. “Make pomegranates of blue, purple and scarlet yarn around the hem of the robe, with gold bells between them.” Exodus 28:33
A pomegranate split in half reveals the many seeds hidden inside, reminding us that growth can be happening even when others cannot see it.
The pomegranates at different stages of growth represent the seasons of life (resting, beginning, growing, and producing fruit). Each stage looks different, but every stage has a purpose.
