Falling Leaves

Leaves fell from the tip top of the tree to the firm ground. They swayed back and forth like a beautiful crystal chandelier in the wind. As they slipped onto the cold ground there was a calmness that came over them as if they were destined to meet at that specific time. As I think about the fall season and then the changing of different seasons in our lives, I am reminded of the goodness of God and His ability to create the perfect picture for us that we never could have imagined.

The last few years of my life have presented me with some major changes. I’ve moved far away from my family, friends, and church. I graduated and then started school again, moved home and then moved out on my own, started new jobs and then left them for different new jobs, started and been in new relationships only to start and be in more new relationships, and I’ve learned a whole lot about myself and the world around me. The person I was simply five years ago has evolved into a person that I wouldn’t have recognized at twenty-one. God has done so many wonderful things in my life, but it hasn’t always been easy to accept change and the different seasons that have come and gone.

They say that as you grow older you gain more wisdom, and you begin to see life in a different light. Things that were once crazily important are redefined, and your true character and values present themselves as an open present or box to the world. I’ve come to learn that my desires, wants, and needs have shifted over time. I realize how little I need to be happy (when God is always with me). There are times and seasons when materialism, people pleasing, and the temptation to conform to pressure surround us. I have found that these phases in life seem to fade just like the leaves that fall from the trees. The process isn’t always easy, but somehow we make it through.

I can’t imagine that when a tree changes colors, and then loses all of its leaves it is an easy process. I’m sure that the tree at many times feels the pain and struggle of it all. The tree knows that change is coming, has prepared as much as it can throughout the year for the cold winter, but really is lost in the mystery of life and how it will happen and occur. Maybe we feel like this too. Sometimes we know that change is coming, but we don’t know exactly what that will mean. Sometimes we ask for change, pray for something, and then when the Lord opens the door we are scared to walk through it. Sometimes we aren’t ready for change even though we like to believe that we can conquer the world! The process of change isn’t easy, and it takes time to adjust. Often times we assume that even when we are in the will of God it will be a crazily happily and great time only to find that sometimes are much quieter and slower than others. Sometimes the only preparation that we have for the change that occurs so fast in our life is the willingness and desire to hold the hand of God as he leads us through some of the darkest and most challenging times in our lives. In retrospect we look back on these “dark times,” and we are amazed at how many of the Lord’s footsteps we can see imprinted into our journey.

I have to believe that there is some sort of divine purpose for all of us. There is something special in every change and season that occurs. Just as the leaves fall at a certain time and fulfill their purpose we too must fulfill our purpose. If we do not do what we have been created to do, what is the meaning of our existence?

It’s easy to say we believe Romans 8:28. It’s easy to proclaim that God is great when the blessings, the favor, and our dreams are being fulfilled. But what about the times when God is silent? What about the times when our dreams are put on hold? What about the times when God says “No,” and we want him to say “Yes.” How do we accept a completely different plan? Do we truly believe that ALL things work together for the good to them that love God and are called according to his purpose? Can we truly be honest with ourselves and with our God? Life isn’t always easy. Life isn’t always what we think it will be. Sometimes it is more, and sometimes it is less. But even in these times it would be valuable for us to learn to trust God, to keep seeking out His will, to keep praying even when it seems He is silent and distant, and to keep believing when nothing seems like it will unfold.

The sun began to rise in the east that day. The sparkle of the morning dust lifted quietly up off the ground. Rose petals began to open, birds began to chirp, and the trees began to stretch their branches as if to yawn for the rising of the day. No one knew exactly what to expect this Spring. The one thing they did know however was that no matter what: God was with them, He desperately loved them, and that He wanted to wrap His arms of mercy and grace around them on this beautiful new day that He had given to them.

Broken Glass...

Her hand stretched and reached for it before it hit the floor. Her facial expression dropped as you could see the temporary terror in her eyes. Without time to be caught, the glass fell to the ground, and separated into hundreds of tiny glass pieces. We’ve all heard this noise before at a restaurant, and we all have the same reaction. We look toward the noise, act as if we have never seen a glass or plate drop to the ground and break, and then we turn back around like nothing has ever happened.



This same occurrence happens in the lives of so many Christian churches, families, and individuals. Many times we are like a glass that has dropped to the ground and broken into many pieces. Our lives are made up of past hurts, wounds that have festered, and problems that we have hidden under the surface for years. Like an iceberg, many times the problem that we see is only part of the larger problem that is going on inside. The sad reality is that no matter how hard we try to cover up the brokenness it still exists. We can wear masks, live dual lives, try to fool the whole world into believing that we are okay, but truth be known we need help. We never fool God, and most of the time we don’t even ask for his help. We ignore him when we really need to cling to him, so that he can work through the brokenness to make us whole again.



Personally, I have struggled with brokenness. I have struggled with being a part of a broken family, which has created individual brokenness of many levels. For years I hid the fact that I was in pain. I never expressed the anger I felt toward the brokenness that I had encountered. I never knew that it was okay to be angry, that it was normal to feel rejected, and that it was human nature to want to be made whole again. I felt guilt for being broken, but I didn’t know how to be healed. I thought that I knew God, but I didn’t know him as my healer.



When a glass breaks it shreds into many pieces. These pieces can be very dangerous for all of those involved in the accident. Our lives, when broken and in pieces can be very dangerous. Our attitude, spirit, words, conduct, and behavior can be dangerous. When we hurt others hurt. In 1 Peter 5:7 we are instructed to cast our cares and anxiety upon God, because he cares for us. Sometimes we try to carry all of our hurts, because we don’t know that we can give them to the Lord. We hurt for years, because we don’t know that it is the will of God for us to give these hurts to our loving and caring Savior. You don’t have to carry your hurts, because he carried them already on Calvary.



In conclusion, I know that the Lord wants to make us whole again. The funny thing about dropping a glass is that if you pick up all the pieces and superglue it back together it never looks the same. When God heals us we are never the same again. When God heals us we become stronger, and more able to withstand the next raging storm. God wants to bring healing to us today, and he wants to take what society has left in broken pieces and make it whole. God wants to reconcile us back to Him! God is able to take our broken pieces, and make a beautiful creation again. Why not let him?



Romans 5:10-11, “For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. (ESV)”