FALL IN G'VILLE

The fall season is well under way here in the Upstate of South Carolina. The trees have all changed color and the leaves have begun to make their short journey to the ground. This has always been my favorite season of the year. Even as a young boy, this time of year used to fascinate me. With the changing of the seasons comes a change to so many aspects of life. The air gets cooler, the days grow darker much quicker, the ground becomes scattered with the color of the trees, etc. I find myself looking for new change with each passing day. The only problem I find with this time of year is this - we move from the beauty of the leaves and the crisp fall air straight into winter. With winter comes the cold wind, the hardened ground, the frigid tempatures, the dormant grass and flowers...it just seems as if life on the outside ceases to exist!

Okay, I know it appears that I have just gone into a very depressing state...but hang with me for a moment.

In Ecclesiastes 3 we find these words:

1 There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: 2 a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, 3 a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, 4 a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, 5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain, 6 a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, 7 a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, 8 a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace. 9 What does the worker gain from his toil? 10 I have seen the burden God has laid on men. 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.

Did you catch that? Solomon says that God has created a time for everything - every activity under the sun. And, along with the timing of God, He has made everything beautiful in its time! The point here is God understands change better than anyone - and He knows how to make the changes that come to you and me instrumental in the process of reflecting His glory. I know this, because there is no beauty - no good - nothing right outside of the presence of God!

Here is my advice to you...rather than fight the shifs and changes of life, move with them. See them as opportunities to discover the glory of God. Recognize the changes of life as moments for experiencing and reflecting the beauty of our Heavenly Father!