Time for A Change
Today I went for a run in my favorite Columbus park - Highbanks Metro Park. I discovered this park about a month or so ago since it's pretty close to my new place.
I almost chickened out of going because when I walked out the door I realized how chilly it was getting outside. But - I decided to stick to my promise to myself of working out/running three times this week.
Highbanks is my favorite so far because of their nature trails. They rock. They're not too flat, not too hilly - but still a challenge. The park is pretty big so it's nice to have variety in scenery each visit.
I couldn't help but stop a few times and just stare at all the oranges, reds, and yellows in the leaves. The trails run through several gorges, streams, etc so it's absolutely beautiful this time of year.
I stopped at the top of a hill that overlooks a ginormous gorge and wished so hard that I had a camera. It was almost like experiencing fall for the first time...and then I realized it was nothing new, this happens every year. Why have I not slowed down each fall to appreciate it?
I started thinking about what the leaves changing colors really means. The dominate word in my mind was 'change'. Something new is taking place all over the world of nature. It's something quite beautiful.
The same God who orders the universe and the leaves to change colors, is the same God who orders my footsteps and commands change in my life. I remember my eighth grade teacher always saying "change is good for the soul". Sometimes change sucks. Change only sucks when we're afraid or self-conscious or timid. Changes suck when everything is comfortable and change might really shake our perfect worlds to their sides.
I bet if leaves had brains, they would be self-conscious about their beautiful green selves turning yellow, orange, then red. I bet they would think, "But, I like being beautiful green!"..."I don't want to be yellow...I wonder if other people will like me when I'm orange"..."It was so much fun being green, it might be harder being red!".
Just like the leaves, we have seasons in our lives. When life is going great for us, we're just like leaves in the prime of spring and summer. And then all of a sudden, cold temperatures come along and we can sense God making a change in our lives. Just like the leaves, we wonder why life can't just remain perfect for a little while longer. We doubt ourselves, we might second guess our preparedness for a new season.
Don't get me wrong, I do love it when the leaves are the most lush green. But I am so much more in awe when I see the fall array among the once green leaves. Right now the leaves are at their beauty peak and I can't wait to see them again tomorrow because I know that soon they will turn brown and fade away.
I have to believe that just like those leaves, we are most beautiful and-awe inspiring while experiencing extreme change.
Who would we be if we never faced challenges? What would we ever accomplish if every day in our lives was a lush, green day?
More importantly, if every day was beautiful and green...how often would we think of God? How often would we need to put our trust in Him? How often would we fall down on our knees and beg Him for an answer? Or praise Him for a victory? If every day was green and perfect, we might start thinking we're the ones in control.
When you look down in a gorge during the winter time, it's very easy to see the tree trunks that have fallen and rest along the forest bottom. Similarly, when we go through seasons of winter in our own lives, it's very easy to see our past failures and mistakes.
But when the gorge is full of fall-colored leaves, the fallen trees only make the forest look more beautiful. When we're most beautiful is when we're overcoming and changing and using our past failures and mistakes as stepping stones.
Embrace change as a chance to become more beautiful, more passionate, more engaged in God's wonders.
Look forward to the person you are becoming.
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