By Pastor B.J. Knefley

It’s that time of year again. Leaves are falling and it’s getting colder. Our days are getting shorter and shorter. Soon it will be snowing. In fact, even while I write this, I’m aware of a winter advisory for the area that I grew up in.

Falling leaves represent many things to many people. For me it’s time to put the summer activities away and to prepare for winter. The snow blower gets checked out, the lawn mowers are put away, air conditioners are removed and stored, and of course the raking of leaves begins. At a previous house that was a full two-day chore or more. I have a 5×9 foot trailer with 2-foot sides and I pack it full. The riding mower mulches what’s left over. I also have a walk behind vacuum that does a great job but if there are a lot of leaves, I’m emptying the bag every other pass, and that’s not fun.

The natural seasons are each unique. To each season there are positive and negatives, but try as we might, they come, and they go regardless of our thoughts about them. The truth be known there are things I like about each of them. The seasons of life are similar in that they come as they are supposed to. The writer of Ecclesiastes states, “There is a time to be born and a time to die. A time to plant and a time to harvest.” The seasons of life and the natural seasons are not going away. Perhaps the question we all must ask isn’t about what but rather how. How am I going to deal with the changes that are coming. Am I willing to embrace them as part of life’s many challenges and roll with them, or am I going to buck and complain at every turn?

We find that there are two different things that people do when faced with the challenges of life. They either react or respond. Those that react often create more problems for themselves because they don’t think through their actions. Those that respond create less drama and tend to have a greater sense of peace through the journey. Both natural and life seasons come and go. The journey will be affected by our reactions or our responses. We have a choice in either case.  

Think about it.