The temperatures are finally dropping, and fall is in the air. I love the changing of the seasons. I’m glad that the weather isn’t the same all year long. One thing I miss from moving south is the dramatic change in the seasons. In Pennsylvania we had a lot more hardwood trees like maples, birches, and oaks. In the fall the leaves on these trees turn beautiful and vibrant colors. From our kitchen window, we could look out to the mountains behind our home and the trees looked like some beautiful painting. The colors last for only a few weeks, and then all those leaves fall to the ground and the trees are left bare. For a while the scene is gray and dreary, but we know that soon spring will come and the trees will be robed with beautiful new green leaves. The writer of Ecclesiastes writes about changing seasons in our lives. Just like the seasonal changes, our lives go through different periods. There are times of joy and times of sorrow. There are times of good health and times of illness. The reality is that things are always changing, and some of those changes are better than others. But we can be sure of this, God is with us through all the changing seasons, and we know that even if we are facing a dark time of winter, spring will come and there will be new life. Thank God for the changing seasons and the hope that is ours!
– Dr. Neil Epler