Originally published Sunday, 08 November 2015.
This morning after taking the kids to the bus stop, I intended to catch up on some reading for seminary. Instead, I took one look around and realized I needed to get the house in order. Toys were strewn about and first grade papers were taking over the kitchen table. When it was all done I breathed a sigh of relief. I function better when chaos is kept to a minimum, and yet I’m constantly finding myself surrounded by it.
I keep telling myself I’ll miss these days.
Fall is my favorite season. As much as I love having my kids home in the summer, I also love the hustle and bustle of school shopping and new learning. The fire colored leaves bring me peace, and every year I stand in awe of how only God can make beauty out of what’s dying.
The leaves turn extraordinary colors just before dropping to the ground where they are raked up and forgotten. Their glory days of serving the trees with magnificent green is over, and sooner than later new blooms will fashion brand new brilliance.
In our lifetimes we will see many seasons of falling leaves. But will we stop to enjoy them? Mothers will continue to serve their children well. We will go to our respective workplaces and worry about the to-do list of tomorrow, but if we’re not careful anxiety will disguise the truth of the season and before we know it we will miss the message He intends for us.
Will any of us take time to look around and thank God for the amazing gift of changing leaves? It doesn’t matter if you’re a mother buried in household chores, a professional working to get the job done, or a missionary in a third world country, (Hey, maybe you’re all three!) I believe God created this season as a reminder for all of us.
- Change can be stunning.
- Death leads to new life.
- Everything on earth is temporary.
Proverbs 3:26 says, “For the Lord will be your confidence, and will keep your foot from being caught.”
- When we stay focused on surrounding chaos, we miss the beauty of moments wrapped in joy.
- When we worry about change, and what might be dying off, we forget about promised new blooms.
- When we focus on our own lives rather than His surrounding majesty, we forget that seasons change but our God NEVER does.
When we allow Christ to be our confidence our feet will not be caught!
What if we choose to open our eyes to the beauty of today and all the hope it holds? I don’t know about you, but I’m exhausted from my to-do list and the worries that accompany living in this fallen world.
Friend, we must choose to be confident in a God who walks through eternity making all things new.
Whether you are experiencing a season of life or death, there is a plan for you that’s already been perfected by a perfect God. (Tweet that)
Have you ever looked at the changing leaves and thought God made them with you in mind? The beauty of dying leaves are meant to give you renewed confidence in Him. There is beauty in everything, and He made it all.
Love,
Jennifer
SHARE
