Falling for You

If you doubt the existence of God, may I suggest something?  It’s super simple.  Won’t take you but a few seconds, yet might just change your eternity.

Step outside.

That’s it.  Just walk out into the world and take a look around, my friends.  The evidence, the proof of Him . . .

Y’all.  It’s everywhere.

It’s in the gold.  Dancing from branches, swaying on the breeze as the temperatures fall, it pours like warm honey into the soul.  The color of his lampstands in the temple.  The color of the bowl where he holds the prayers of the saints.  The color of the streets in heaven.  It glistens and gleams and reflects the light, His light, and I know . . . it’s all His doing. 

It’s in the orange too.  The orange, reminding me there will be a harvest, again, because his provisions never stop.  It catches my eye, lapping at me, like flames reaching out to touch the coldest heart.  That fiery orange, so pure and vibrant it could never be replicated, it burns down in, consuming me with the warmth only He can bring.

It’s in the red as well.  Every shade, from scarlet to crimson, the hues seem almost unimaginable on leaves once green.  The red, so rich and sure and alive, dripping like grace to cover me, all of me.  That red, the color of blood poured out on a cross, the color of blood shed to redeem a broken world, the color of our Savior's blood, given to bring life that never ends.

The gold shimmering in the sunshine, it won’t last.  The orange will be gone within weeks.  The red disappears as each day grows colder.  But that gold hanging like love notes from the trees, it cries out, See my greatness and power and glory and majesty and splendor. That orange flaring up before my very eyes, it calls loudly, The world is all my creation. That red flashing deep and vibrant and true, it sings, Delight in what I have made. 

And though they all drop away as fall becomes winter, for a short time each year, every year, the colors of autumn offer beautiful, fleeting reminders. Those colors, they burst through my doubts and shout from the treetops and pulse in my ears . . .

You

are

worth

EVERYTHING

to

me.

Happy Fall, friends!  May this season of bounty and blessings fill you with love the way it always seems to do for me - may His love be so complete in you, that it can't help but overflow to others. 

Ahhhhhhhh.  I do believe Fall has arrived.

WOOHOO!!! Fall is finally here!

Hallelujah and praise the Lord.  It's Fall.

Hot dog, dem leaves isa changin!  I reckon it's 'bout time to say 'Happy Fall Y'all'!!!

However you want to announce it, there is some serious rejoicing going on in my hometown this month, and I'm proud to be among the revelers.

In Atlanta, Fall doesn't ever creep in through the backdoor and take residents by surprise.  In Atlanta, the arrival of Fall is a long awaited, much anticipated transformation.  After months of temperatures frequently beginning with the number '9,' Fall is a welcome reprieve that comes just in the nick of time, and makes Georgia residents forget the August humidity so fast they've bought a new pair of boots in every color less than a month after Labor Day.  

The change of seasons is truly one of the best assets of my hometown.  Sure, we might have the longest rush hours in the country and pictures of Atlanta could be featured next to the words "urban sprawl" on Wikipedia, but we have Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall people, and if ever there were four blessings to be counted, those four are certainly at the top of my list.

Each of our distinct seasons has its advantages.  A winter snow day in Atlanta is nothing short of magical - there is a peace that descends on the city when the Georgia pines are coated in ice that makes you believe all is right in the world.  In the Spring, the blooming daffodils are followed by the red buds are followed by the dogwoods are followed by the cherry trees are followed by the azaelas are followed by the tulips, and now the world isn't just right, it's full of possibility.   Next comes summer, and though the steering wheel in your car can give you second degree burns, school is out and the pools are open and everyone runs around in flip flops eating popsicles and ice cream.   And then, just when you don't think you can handle one more day of the oppressive heat, you step outside in late September, and your breath catches in your throat as you feel it against your skin - that unmistakable crispness in the air.

Fall.

It's my favorite season.  Life is truly lovely in September, October, and November.  And December. Because, hey, that's the beauty of living in northeastern Georgia. The last few weeks have had people planting mums and buying gourds, and I wake up each day craving a pumpkin spice latte and an afternoon spent watching college football.  There is the anticipation of the rapidly approaching holidays and the smell of apple cider and the opportunity to wrap up in a cozy fleece blanket in the evenings.  And the leaves . . .the colors are so spectacular, so stunningly vibrant they could never be duplicated by a human hand. 

In Matthew 6:30 it says . . . If God pays that much attention to the appearance of what he creates in nature, don't you think he'll do his best for you? 
 
When something comes along in the next few months to bring me down . . . to make me doubt my beauty . . . to make me doubt my worth . . . to make me doubt God . . . 

I'm going to walk outside . . .

And I'm going to see the pumpkins and the mums . . .

And I'm going to feel the cool breeze brush my face . . .

And I'm going to stare at the glorious burgundies and oranges and yellows filling my backyard where there once was only green . . .

And I will remember why I love Fall.  I will remember why it's my favorite season.  Because Fall feeds my faith. I hope and pray it feeds yours as well. 

HAPPY FALL FRIENDS!!!