How to Navigate Seasons of Transition and Change

Holy Saturday. The time in between Good Friday and Christ’s death and Easter Sunday and the resurrection. It’s a space of the already but not yet. A time of leaving behind the world as it was and preparing to enter into the world as it is becoming. 

            But for the disciples, it was a space of fear and uncertainty. They were being asked to leave behind who they had been for the last three years and to step into a new identity. One they weren’t certain of. 

            Sure Jesus mentioned this event multiple times while with them. But partially knowing what’s coming doesn’t mean you’re prepared to walk through it. Nor do you fully understand all of the changes that are coming your way. 

            When I think about Holy Saturday and what the disciples experienced, I’m reminded of the idea of thresholds that’s spoken of in the Celtic Christian tradition. It’s the idea of a thin space in time, of moving between something that was and the new space that is in front of us.

            Often times, that new space involves the sacred, as it did that Saturday leading into Easter Sunday. Thresholds can refer to the act of physically entering into a new space, such as leaving the outside world behind and stepping into a holy area, a sanctuary of sorts. 

            But thresholds can also symbolize a time of transition. Of being asked to leave behind who you were and how you moved through life and into a new way of existing. The seasons are a familiar example of this. Who we are in summer and how we do things is different from who we are in the dead of winter. 

            Sometimes these thresholds are expected, like the beginning of a new season. Other times we might have an idea that change is coming even if we’re uncertain of what all it brings, like the disciples. 

           But sometimes there are moments where we are asked to step into a threshold unexpectedly. Illness. Death. Loss of a job. A sudden move. All moments ushering us into a new space. 

            Each threshold asks us to figure out what new structures we want to build. What beliefs will guide us in this new land. What routines and patterns should carry on, and what must be left behind in the old land. 

            The most beautiful thing about thresholds is that they are a reminder of how close the divine is. How thin the separation between the world of the sacred and our daily lives actually is. And in these pockets of time and space, we are brought to a deeper understanding of who God is. 

            The last two years have been a time of threshold for many in the world. Some chose to embark into new ways of being intentionally. Many of us did not. So what do we do when we find ourselves in a Holy Saturday space? A season of the already but not yet. 

            There are a few things to keep in mind as we navigate where we are being asked to move next and how we should inhabit that space. 

            First, and most importantly, know that it is okay to feel fear and uncertainty. To doubt. To ask questions. To recognize that while thresholds can bring us closer to the divine, they also ask us to step into the unknown wilderness for a time. 

            This place is not easy to inhabit, but like all things, it is not permanent. Whether the circumstances that brought us to this place were filled with pain or joy over a new future, know that good can come of it. We can trust in that reality. But that doesn’t mean we aren’t allowed to feel other emotions too.  

            Allow yourself to sit in this space and feel your way through it. What emotions are coming up for you? What questions are there? What stories are you telling yourself in this moment? 

            Spend time with these things rather than ignoring them or trying to push your way through them as fast as possible. Allow yourself to grow and develop for however long it takes. The magic happens in the unfolding. 

            Second, reflect on your last way of moving through life. What were you shown? How were you asked to grow? What patterns, stories, and practices were life giving for you? 

            Reflect on where you’re moving next, even if the space on the other side of the threshold is still unclear. What do you feel drawn to? What things are you being called to leave behind? What new practices, stories, and ways of being do you need to adopt in this new landscape? 

            Have grace with yourself as you answer each of these questions and any others that appear. It is okay to leave things behind if that is what you are called to do. It is okay to change and move through the world differently on the other side of this threshold. It is only by allowing ourselves to go through this process of change that we can fully respond to where God is leading us next. 

            Last, remember that like the disciples in the room in Jerusalem, you are cared for and watched over by God. Though the world around you is shifting and uncertain, you have not nor will you ever be abandoned by God.

            This Holy Saturday moment, your threshold between two spaces and ways of being, is both awe inspiring and terrifying. It can bring joy and it can bring heartache, as we become someone new and move into a world that looks different from what we knew before. 

            But just like Holy Saturday gave way to the beauty of Easter Sunday, our own threshold moments lead us to encounters with God that leave us changed forever.