Autumn arrives with golden hued beauty, crisp, clear evenings and deep blue skies. In these weeks of autumn color we revel in the kaleidoscope of brilliance God has created. We absorb the delightful smells and sensations that go along with the fall season. We long to hang on to the beauty of these days and store them deep in our hearts.
autumn’s Splendor
We are created with a longing for beauty. God’s purpose for our lives is to have the beauty of Christ rest upon us. In those moment when our hearts pause in awe at the display of beauty before us we are reminded again that we are made in the image of a beauty loving God. A God who longs to impart His beauty to us and within us.
As we soak up the splendors of autumn days, we might wonder why the leaves have such a wonderful array of color. How did this beauty come to brighten our days? Through studying God’s creation we know all about the process of photosynthesis. The chlorophyll (the green of the leaves) absorbs the light from the sun, which combines with carbon dioxide and water to make sugar, which is food for the plants. Photosynthesis has been at work since the first bursting of the green leaf, which is now filled with vibrant color. When autumn comes, God shuts down their little sugar-making factories by allowing a scab to form on the petiole. Consequently, the leaf is unable to receive the water it needs to continue the process of photosynthesis. It is then that God, with a flourish, shows us a little bit of His magnificent beauty throughout autumn’s winsome days.
Autumn’s Lesson
There is a lesson that we can learn from these leaves that bring us beauty filled days. At times we can be caught up in the process of working for the Lord. We know how to do it just right. Our calendars overflow with appointments with places to go and people to see. We pray for our list, perform our mandatory reading and race on into our day. Yet, when our days are filled with the countless details of the “have to” we tend to leave out time for the personal growth of holiness in our own lives.
When we are caught up in the whirlwind which is our lives, can the beauty of Jesus be seen in us? If we haven’t stopped on purpose for a time of fellowship with the Author of beauty, the “colors” of our life will become dull and bland. However, when we stop for fellowship with our Creator our lives will become filled with His beauty.
Throughout the days of autumn, the process and work of photosynthesis stops. The chlorophyll drains away and the leaf, with amazing clarity, begins to show the hidden beauty that has been there all along. For you see, the colors on the leaves have been there since the leaf first came into view. It was that continual work of photosynthesis that had stopped the color from coming through.
autumn’s vision
Have we been stopping long enough in each of our days to linger in the very Essence of Beauty–God Himself? Are we allowing Him to remove that layer of “chlorophyll” in our lives so that His beauty can be viewed? Have the struggles of life clouded the beauty of Jesus? Possibly it is our busyness that has been keeping us from sitting at the feet of Jesus. In those instances, we must, on purpose, spend vital moments with the Master. Moments where He can impart new life and a vibrant beauty of His Spirit into our lives. This is not going to happen if we just out of duty pray over our list and read our daily verse out of habit.
Maybe there are others on the opposite end of the spectrum. Your life seems to stretch out before you with a nothingness that cuts you to the quick. You have that feeling that you are no longer needed. People in that time of life may have a tendency to shrivel up. Don’t let that happen. Thank God for this extra gift of time in your life and linger long and learn more of the greatness and beauty of the God you serve. Then let His beauty be seen by whomever you come in contact with.
Autumns beauty
God stops the process of photosynthesis in the days of autumn, so that the hidden beauty of the leaves can be revealed. Let us learn to stop daily in that secret place with Him, so that the beauty of Jesus may be revealed in us.
After the autumn rains come the leaves will begin to drift to the ground. Only a remnant of their far flung beauty will remain. During the coming holiday season let us continue to remember to linger in God’s Presence. So we can pray with the psalmist, “Let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us.”
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