I’ve been walking in our
neighborhood over the past couple of weeks as the fall foliage has been in its
full glory. I took the first picture when
all the leaves were a dazzling array of brilliant colors. About a week later, I took the second picture
due to the stark contrast in external beauty.
Same trees, just different days.
It got me thinking about how the underlying qualities of the trees haven’t
changed, just the season. Our lives can
be very much the same way.
Ecclesiastes 3:1 - There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens
Things to think about:
· The thing
with the trees is that to the outside observer, one picture looks like a postcard
and the other like something in the delete file. But the reality is those are the exact same
trees. Same roots, same trunk, same
limbs. The trees didn’t do anything
wrong, they aren’t being ravaged by a disease, they haven’t been damaged by a
vandal, they are just experiencing the ebbs and flows of life.
· We can often
mistake the natural rhythms of life as reward or judgement. In fact, it may just be there are seasons as
found in Chapter 3 of Ecclesiastes. Here are some typical seasons we go
through:
o
Job
o
Health
o
Relationships
o
Mood
o
Feeling of closeness to the Lord
· But there a
few unchanging things that are vital to focus on.
Think of these as the roots, trunk, and limbs. Even though the beauty of the leaves fell to
the ground, the core value of the tree is unchanged:
o
Our value
§ Genesis 1:27
- So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of
God he created them;
male and female he created them.
§ The world may
not value you as much when you’ve lost your leaves, but you are still made in
the image of God
o
Our place
§ Colossians 2:6-7
- So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live
your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the
faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
· Our roots
hold us firmly in place and we grow stronger in the Lord as out trunk adds more
rings of experience and wisdom each year
o
Our eternity
§
Romans 8:38-39 - For I am convinced that neither death nor life,
neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in
all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in
Christ Jesus our Lord.
· Our
circumstances may make us look a little worse for wear and tear, but there is
no storm, cold snap, or pest that can uproot us or tear us down. Once we are planted in God’s Kingdom, we’re
there to stay.
· The seasons
and circumstances will change, but whether things are going really well or not
so much, your value, God’s love for you, and your place in the Kingdom are
never in jeopardy.