The Beauty of Change

As the season of fall begins to take shape in Alabama, I feel an indescribable joy fluttering inside myself. That simple contentment that comes from looking outside the window to see red, yellow, and brown leaves fluttering in the wind and to cozy up in my living room chair with a warm cup of pumpkin chai. I've been away from the U.S. so long I have almost forgotten the beauty of the changing seasons.



In Ecuador, there were two seasons: rainy and dry. You can probably guess what defined the two periods. During rainy season the days were wet and mucky, and it drizzled at least once a day. In the dry season, high winds swept through my little town, picking up dust and blasting cold into my apartment. There were many wonderful things about the climate in Ecuador, but I missed those special moments, like trees shedding their leaves or the first flowers peeking out from under the frost in spring.

 

A friend and mentor once told me: live your life in seasons. Don't worry so much about the distant future or try to plan your whole life out, but take it one season at a time. One season at a time. The metaphor stuck with me, and ever since that conversation in my last year of college, I have thought of my life in that way. I haven't chosen one career or scored the job that makes big bucks. But I have chosen a path for this season of my life. I chose to be a missionary, because that is what God called me to for now. I might not do it forever, in fact I really don't know what I'll be doing at this time next year, but God has a plan.

So while the cool winds blow through, and the temperature drops, I encourage you to embrace the change. Instead of complaining about the colder weather, see the beauty in it. As a wise man says in Ecclesiastes 3, "There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under heaven." 

Be blessed in this lovely fall season.