I love the Fall! The bright morning sunlight, the crisp fall air, the cooler temperatures, all tell me that change is coming. I feel invigorated, released from the heat of summer, looking forward to the days ahead.
My favorite part of Fall is, of course, the beautiful colors of the leaves. All summer long the trees have kind of blended together, all wearing the same dark green, making it difficult to tell where one tree ends and another begins. But those first cool nights of fall hit, change begins to happen. The dropping temperatures stress the leaves, but this only serves to bring out the beauty which was hidden within. Suddenly, each leaf is unique, each tree displays its unique palette of color.
At one time or another adversity comes to each of us. Like the falling temperatures of autumn, hardship stresses our resolve. How we respond tells a lot about what (or Whom) we have inside. Will the stress cause us to wither away or will it allow our inner beauty, the beauty of a Christ-like character, to shine through?
James 1 tells us to “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” (vs 1-4 NIV).
Today, when things don’t go quite your way, don’t give up, but “Consider it pure joy…”. God is at work, testing you, refining you, “that the proven genuineness of your faith…may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.” (1 Peter 1:7). Let Him do His work, that your true beauty may be revealed, that beauty “which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” (Colossians 1:27).