Seasons

Fall is such a glorious time of year. As I write this I can see our big maple trees with their leaves at various levels of change. I don't see any leaves showing off their vibrant green from the summer, but there are still clusters of dull green in the midst of of the golden colors of fall. They are quite beautiful this year and have begun to carpet our lawn with those leaves they have dropped already.

As I have watched the colors of this fall, it has caused me to think a little about seasons. Spring is the season of new life and hope. Summer the season of developing fruit and vegatables. Late summer and early fall the season of harvest. While winter is the season of rest. Did you realize that the seasons reflect the cycles of grace, not only in nature, but in life? The seasons are the annual cycle whereas the 24 hour period we call a day also reflects the cycle of grace.

Like the calendar year which begins in the middle of winter (the season of rest), the day starts in the middle of the night (also the season of rest). The morning is the time of waking to find that life is already happening around us, like spring, and then we move into the "fruitful" period of the day. Coming home in the evening to relax (the "fall") and then sleep. The cycle of grace begins again.

It's interesting to look at the cycles of grace that God has built into the world and to see how we fight against them. We "force" plants to flower and bear fruit at times other than their normal cycles. We make people stay up all night working so that others might be able to run to the store to get something. We have a hard time with grace. Not just saving grace ("I'm too proud to receive something for nothing!") but living grace. Perhaps that is why God said that on one day of the week we are to refrain from work. Perhaps he knew that without his clear direction we would run ourselves ragged?

Sabbath is part of the cycle of grace for living. But unlike time and the seasons, it's a cycle that we can participate in or not, based on our choice. Most of us opt out of it. A simple definition of the term "Sabbath" is "Stop!" Stop working your fingers to the bone for one day. Stop chasing money or projects or distractions. Stop long enough to realize that your value, your worth, as a person is not dependent upon how much you do, own or work. You value is in being. You are valuable because God created you.

Personally, I like harvest time. I want to bear fruit all the time. No breaks. No rests. No let downs. I mean, if I were really spiritual it would be like that, right? If I abide in Jesus, the vine, I'll bear much fruit (John 15)... all the time. I suppose it partly depends on which definition of fruit you use, but even the vineyard goes through the seasonal cycles of grace. Even Jesus got away for rest.

Try taking a sabbath this fall. A day (or a part of a day) where you just stop. Don't plan anything. Just let the day happen. Enjoy the colors of the leaves. Take a nap. Enjoy a hot cocoa. Curl up in Abba Father's lap and just be. Maybe He will whisper in your ear, "Now that's more like it!"

Enjoy!