Fall is Here!

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven. Ecclesiastes 3: 1

Indeed, there is…and now is time for fall, the season of gathering.

Isn’t it amazing how fall comes upon us almost imperceptibly, and yet right before our eyes? One day we notice the morning air become just a bit crisper. Another day we realize is darker earlier. And then, there’s one afternoon, when the sun hits them just right, we notice a few leaves have begun to ripe.

I don’t know about you, but for me, every year, at that moment, when I see the color on the leaves start to pop, something in my heart also begins to turn. My soul overflows with a mixture of melancholy and sweetness…melancholy for the past that is leaving and sweetness for the beauty that’s approaching. But if I dig deeply, I also discover that I feel hope. I feel the hope of things to come. I feel the hope of God’s mercy that never leaves us in one state for too long. I feel the hope of the gathering.

After summer with its constant alluring towards the outdoors, with the endless road trips, the beach time, lake time, playground time, pool time, garden time, in comes fall, to gather us all back in. It’s the time for gathering the fruits of our garden. It’s the time for gathering the kids back to school. It’s the time for gathering the falling leaves, of course. It’s the time to gather together to say thanks.

That is the hope of fall…gathering together with those we love.

So this year, I resolve to welcome fall and focus on its hope…

He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men…Ecclesiastes 3: 11a

Linking with: Essential Thing Devotions