EVERY SEASON COUNTS

In 2007, after graduating from the University of Strasbourg, I returned to Holy Etchmiadzin. His Holiness appointed me as Deputy Chancellor. I found myself working in the Divanatun, at the chancellery, surrounded by letters, documents, and speeches. My days were filled with writing, editing, revising—again and again. Each word had to be chosen carefully. Each sentence had to be refined until it carried the right meaning.

To be honest, I was not happy in those days. I wondered, Is this really what God has called me to do? I did not see purpose in the endless hours of rewriting and polishing. I thought perhaps my gifts were meant for something else.

But now, years later, I can look back and see that God was preparing me for today. The discipline of those days—the constant writing, editing, and attention to detail—shaped the way I communicate now. Every time I sit down to write a reflection for iLooys, every time I prepare a sermon or message, I find myself carefully shaping each word and sentence. I owe that care and discipline to those years in the chancellery.

Friends, what seems meaningless at the moment may later prove to be God’s training ground. The tasks we don’t enjoy, the seasons we find tedious, the work we wish we could escape—these are often the very tools God uses to prepare us for our calling.

Think of Moses tending flocks in the desert for forty years. It may have seemed like wasted time, but God was shaping him into the leader who would guide Israel out of Egypt. Think of David tending sheep in the fields. It may have felt ordinary, but those fields were the training ground where God prepared him to be a shepherd of His people.

And so it is with us. Nothing is wasted in God’s hands. Every detail, every assignment, every season, even the ones that frustrate us, can become preparation for the greater purpose He has in store.

So if you find yourself in a place where the work seems dull, where the purpose feels hidden, do not be discouraged. Do not give up. Trust that God is preparing you in unexpected ways. And one day, you will look back and say, “Lord, thank You for that preparation. I see now what You were doing all along.”

Bishop Mesrop Parsamyan
September 18, 2025