She’s Got Her Fall On

For a couple of weeks, I’ve walked by a neighbor’s door (seen here) that already had her Fall décor up. It jolted me because my mind wasn’t on Fall yet since we still have hot weather here. But then I remembered shopping at Hobby Lobby and their Fall décor was out and people were buying. Side note – even Christmas décor is ready for our pickin’!

I should be like her since Fall is my favorite time of the year. The yummy pumpkin spice coffee, pumpkin breads and those spicy, glorious scents from our Fall candles. Fall has literally sprung up on us – already some changing colors of leaves and foliage and college teams’ fans are out in numbers as they sport their favorite team shirts. I was so inspired that I changed out some of my summer clothes for fall/winter ones.

Isn’t it amazing how God designed our world? My brilliant, scientific mind knows that seasons are the result of our planet’s tilt. That’s when our part of the world tilts toward the sun, we get spring and summer; when it tilts away, we get fall and winter.

Our Creator didn’t have to do it that way. He could have created our planet with no tilt and no seasons. But God loves diversity. He wants us to experience our world from the far north to the far south.

Yay! Cooling trends in our weather have started. At least we aren’t in the 100s here in Austin! Soon we’ll start thinking about our families gathering, and all the other beautiful things about this season.

I love the changing seasons. Here in Texas, we get four distinct seasons, and there are reasons to love each one……more or less. I change the decor of my home as often as there’s a change in the season. I get rid of the old so I can embrace the new.

In Ecclesiastes 3:1, King Solomon wrote, “There is a time for everything, and everything on earth has its special season.” Many of us would be much more comfortable if everything always stayed the same; yet it doesn’t. EVERYTHING has its seasons. Though many like the changing of seasons in nature, they are frightened with the changing of seasons in life. They grip so tightly to the present that it becomes traumatic when things change.

It’s not always easy to make the “seasonal” transitions. When we are single, we want to be married. When we are married, we want children and when we have children, we want them to be grown and out of the house. Or, not. My friend is in mourning because her “nest” has emptied out. Two of her kids are in college and the third is out on her own, after graduating college.

Here’s the thing. God plans and gives us the seasons of nature and He ushers in the seasons in our lives and walks us through each one of them with us. He planned “seasons” to help us grow through each one.

God desires that we embrace what He is doing with faith and gratitude. He is always working in us. During the season of planting, when there is no harvest, God is watering, nurturing, and maintaining us so that in due season we can bring forth beautiful fruit in our lives.

Every day is a gift, and whether that day includes joy, happiness, peace, and comfort or it’s stress-filled and challenging — we know it is a part of this season that God has us in.

May we savor everything that each season holds — because THE ONE who controls the seasons, is THE ONE who will carry us through each one. I know the actual date of Fall isn’t until September 22nd, but let me welcome you to it. HAPPY FALL, YA’LL!