Last week I noticed a few trees here and there with a tint of fall color. Today a shower of brown oak leaves on the porch and lawn. I went out to investigate and sure enough the first thing I noticed was that at 11am it is only 70 degrees outside! The second thing is that the lawn needs mowing.
A peek here a glimpse there, yes fall is coming, and after winter.
A lot of things die in the winter so were told, but is that true? True the leaves fall off the trees, but the trees aren’t dead. In fact, they are still growing. Not the part above ground, of course, but the roots are still growing. The same holds true for shrubs and perennials. Yes, the annuals die, but not before they produce seed.
John 12:24 Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.
Winter has been called the season of death. We even talk about the autumn and winter of our lives as seasons of growing old and dying. But, I prefer to call winter the Season of Rest. It is a time to sit back and look over the year. How have the seeds you have planted this year done? Some have done well, so plant more next year. Some may need a little tending and encouragement. Some may have grown a little too large. Prune them. Some may have done poorly or even died. Maybe it’s just not the right time or place for those. Pull them up and plant something more appropriate.
Does this sound like a garden or a life, to you? Because to me it sounds like my garden and my life. My garden needs my special attention to grow properly. So that things thrive and the stronger do not crowd out the more delicate. My life needs the same attention from my Creator and Lord. He is constantly pruning things and planting things and sometimes even pulling up and getting rid of things that are not right.
In your Season of Rest, look back over the year and see how the Master Gardener has been at work in your life.
~ written by Amy W.
Amy I love this reflective way of looking at fall – as the autumn of our own year of life. To ponder, show gratitude and make changes. Thank you!
I love this way of looking at things. In spite of the chaos that has surrounded my family lately, we have been blessed with a year of peace in our household. I’ve been praying for that peace to continue through the winter as we welcome another baby (and all the craziness that can come with a newborn!) and I truly believe that a positive attitude and an evaluation like this will benefit my family. Thanks for this insight.