Faithful in Every Season by Bishop Fickett

SPRING 2026 ISSUE | 6 minute read

Faithful in Every Season

Opening Text: “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.” — Ecclesiastes 3:1

I have a fond memory that returns every late fall, when the cold season begins to push out the warmth. As the grandson of a semi-retired dairy farmer, I often became the go-to person for the major chores that required extra hands. It didn’t matter that my family lived in Augusta, Maine — a good hour from Exeter, where my grandparents’ farm was located. I was able-bodied, and that meant I could be dropped off whenever help was needed.

Before you feel too sorry for me, let me clarify — this was a rite of passage for every able-bodied male in the Fickett family. It was also a clear signal that the season was shifting, and whether we liked it or not, we had to prepare for what was next.

Winter always brought what I believed to be the worst chore imaginable: insulating the outside of the house. Plastic went over the basement windows, insulation was placed around the bottom of the house, and then came the plywood — pieces my grandfather had cut and shaped over the years to fit together like a giant puzzle. The work was tiring and frustrating, because if even just one piece was missing, the entire project was stalled. Nothing fit the way it was supposed to.

In ministry, I have often thought about those moments — standing there trying to figure out what my grandfather had in mind when he cut those pieces to fit together. It became especially difficult after Gramp went to be with the Lord. When he was there, I could simply ask. When he wasn’t, the process could be infuriating.

Seasons in ministry can feel exactly like that.

When God feels near and His voice seems clear, ministry is exhilarating, exciting, and full of joy. Vision comes easily. Direction feels certain. But there are other seasons when God feels distant, when clarity fades, and when results seem hard to find — even though we know He has called us to the very place we stand.

In those seasons, we learn to lean not on results, but on our calling. Calling keeps our hearts ready for what’s next.

Ministry is seasonal, but calling is permanent.

For years, I assumed that when leaders stepped away from ministry, something had collapsed spiritually. Surely they must have lost their love for God. Surely their calling must have faded.

But the research tells a different story.

Consistent studies from Barna and Lifeway reveal that pastors rarely leave because they lose their faith. Moral failure accounts for only a small percentage. Loss of calling is even rarer.

The number one reason pastors step away is relational conflict within the church — power struggles, resistance to change, leadership disagreements, persistent criticism, and division among members. Close behind it is burnout — the emotional and mental exhaustion that comes from carrying tension for too long.

In leadership language, it is rarely theology that drives someone out of ministry. It is tension.

Most pastors do not quit because they love God less. They quit because prolonged relational strain begins to feel permanent. And that is where seasons matter.

Many ministry leaders allow something temporary to convince them it is permanent. When conflict lingers, when criticism continues, when exhaustion stretches on, a temporary winter starts to feel like an endless climate, and permanent decisions are made in response to temporary pressure.

Even in nature, there is tension. When winter winds collide with summer warmth, the result can be violent — tornadoes, hurricanes, sudden storms. But even those systems move through. They are intense, but they are not eternal.

Jesus, however, is eternal.

And the One who called you did not call you for one easy season — He called you for all seasons.

Some seasons are fruitful.

Some are lean.

Some feel like a drought.

But the writer of Ecclesiastes reminds us:

“Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.” — Ecclesiastes 3:11 (NLT)

We cannot see the whole scope. That is the tension of leadership. We see the storm;

God sees the season. We feel the pressure; He sees the formation.

So let me remind you:

·    Ministry is seasonal.

·    Your calling is permanent.

·    He called you.

·    And He is faithful.

You may not see the beauty in this season right now. But one day you will look back and recognize that even this — especially this — was part of how God faithfully and miraculously made it all beautiful.

Bishop Chad Fickett
Youth & Discipleship Director
Virginia Church of God State Office