Fall and the Seasons

Sweet Lord,

you do such an amazing work in the seasons in Nature, our physical lives, and our Spiritual lives.  In nature, you could have just given us Summer and then Winter right away; but You, in your loving lkindness and to show us your creative artistry, gave us Spring and Fall too.I know in the tropics, the natives will know nothing of what I speak, and that is sad indeed.

We are now in the Fall of the year here.  The humidity of Summer is replaced by drier air except when it rains, and You start to pain the leaves on the trees and bushes a different color.  Some, like the Oak and Tulip Poplar don muted browns and yellow, while the Maples, Dogwood, Sumac, and Aspen are arrayed in the brightest reds, yellows and oranges.  Together with the evergreens, the scenes in the forests and yards are exquisite!  The mountains and hills are especially wonderful with the full carpet of rare beauty of color that covers their bases. Then the leaves fall to the ground and cover it with their beauty too. The leaves serve as mulch and as they decay provide compost for the ground soil making it more rich than it was.  To the uneducated the trees look as though they are dead...but then, after winter, comes the Spring and they burst forth with the life hidden inside.

So it is with us, Lord.  We are born like the Spring- new infants with a lot of growing and learning to do, but we normally bring joy to others.  (See what happens when a small baby is brought into a group).  Everyone wants to see them, talk with, and hold them.  They do not produce fruit yet.  They start to mature and the blossoms start to form in Adolescence and the Teen years.

Then comes Summer and the fruit producing young adult years...some bear more fruit and beauty than others, but they grow and mature to true adulthood during this time.

Then comes the Fall and harvest time.  These are our mid-life years.  Like the leaves, You start to change the color of our hair, and the "leaves" begin to fall. We are productive, and become the leaders. pouring into our children that are now old enough to start to blossom themselves. Prayerfully, this is the time that we really mature and start to share our life lessons with the younger generation.

As the Senior years begin, so does the winter.  The hair turns grey or white as snow, it is harder to get around than it used to be, but as grandparents, the maturity and wisdom stored up in us may be harder to see with the naked eye, but is definitely there for those who choose to partake of it.

As the winter approaches, the plants and trees look very lifeless and cold.  When we leave this earthly body, we do too.  However;  what people cannot see is that in fact, if we have truly trusted Christ as Savior and Lord,  we are truly evergreen!  Like the trees, our life did not end at all!  We are just starting the Spring in Heaven.