One of my long-time favorite seasons is AUTUMN.
With the exception of the craziness of school starting and
the overwhelming, paralyzing feeling of the new school year and fearing the
morning routine of running late despite what I would call major prep the night
before…AUTUMN, is like no other season in my book.
AUTUMN doesn’t have to make a HUGE “I’m here” announcement. It is a whisper. It’s a gentle change. Clearly different,but oh.so.subtle. The sun goes to sleep sooner and it has no
problem sleeping in a bit later. The hot,
stuffy air becomes cool, sweet and refreshing.
It is crunchy leaves underfoot. It is sipping on fresh hot
apple cider as you walk your little trick or treaters around the neighborhood,
it is football {like it or NOT!!!}…and it is the anticipation of the Holidays
peeking around the corner.
For me, it is as though Autumn has it’s very own calling
card. A simple card, really. One without loud print, squiggly filigree,
and a million different fonts. It is as though it beckons an invitation for
stillness, for quiet…a small pocket of your time to pause and slow down.
What is not to LOVE about calling cards, anyway? It is the GIVER that desires a
relationship. A reminder that they care
enough to see you again, that you are worth investing in, that you matter and
are important. God’s calling card to us
is His Word…and within His Word, He refers to seasons. He knows our lives are filled with
change.
I don’t think that God made a mistake in starting His
creation in a garden!! There is so much
to learn from the life of a gardener…and when I think of gardens I think of
Autumn. It has always fascinated me.
I think it is the reality of it that I like. It is the imperfection and the yucky and the
far from glamorous that is truly intriguing.
It is the jaunt out to the garden that was the envy of everyone on the
block, not that long ago. It was the
garden that boasted the most fragrant of crops, the biggest and the best, that
has become the nastiest sight almost overnight.
It is no longer brimming with beauty, but has almost become hideous. All that seems to be left is the produce that
didn’t quite make the cut. There are the
few rotting veggies that were pulled off
by helping chubby baby hands, bug-infested tomatoes that have enticed the
neighbor dog and squirrels that were tantalized by the garden’s offerings…now
ready for the compost. YES, the
compost!!!
Farmers that know what they are doing do not waste the
scraps. To them, it is necessary to use
the material for next year’s glorious garden.
Indeed, it’s true. It’s like
gold. A precious commodity and balm to
nurture next spring’s beautiful crop.
I like to think that the best farmers in the world are great
composters…and you know what? I happen
to know THE GREAT COMPOSTER. He
specializes in using every last bit of what we think of as debris and even has
a use for the fallen leaves of AUTUMN that seem to have served their purpose
and are so carelessly thrown away. However,
even the clippings are used as blankets to tuck the garden into bed for the
dark, bitter cold days and nights that lie ahead. The GREAT COMPOSTER has amazing resolve to
take impeccable care of what belongs to Him.
If your life is feeling like a big heap of worthlessness, a
life filled with no fruit, no beauty to speak of and unsightly weeds that you,
yourself can’t even look at…allow THE GREAT COMPOSTER to take the scraps from
your garden bed and, in His time, with His expertise…use it for next year’s
crop. Take His que and put some of the
unsightly things to rest and wait patiently for what spectacular things He has
for His new crop come Spring.
I think if
THE GREAT COMPOSTER were to give me His personal calling card today, it would differ from
AUTUMN’S CALLING CARD. I think it would
still be simple…but it would be dirty, blood-stained and definitely
hand-written. I think it would be a bit
tattered…and I think He would be
super-generous with His stack of cards.
He would give me plenty of extras to give out to those who are in
need…just like me. I think He might kiss
me on the forehead and assure me that it is okay to be still with anticipation for the miracle of
new growth to come.
I may be a bit hesitant to the miracle He has promised, but
I think He would quietly remind me that it wont be long before the yuckies will
be just right for the new soil that will produce beauty again…or maybe beauty
for the very first time.
It is in the quiet days of Autumn when you are feeling alone
and fragile that you will hold HIS calling card and read HIS words over and
over again “My GRACE is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in
weakness.” 2 Corinthians 12:9
And when the birds start chirping again, the sun goes to bed
later and its sleeping in is no longer an option, the hot sipping cider is
replaced with fresh-squeezed lemonade…your soul will soar knowing THE GREAT
COMPOSTER has turned what was debris into something marvelous to ensure your
garden bed will brim with new life, beauty and purpose.