SCRIPTURE: For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. Romans 8:20-21 ESV
THOUGHT: November is a time of endings in our little Tennessee valley. Like sailors preparing for a storm, we batten down hatches in gardens, orchards and fields. Porches, decks and docks grow silent, memories of summer echoing off empty wooden planks and posts. The leaves which so recently delighted lie helpless at our feet, sending up the whispery distress signals of late autumn—dry, frail, dusty and dying.
We go through it each year, but I never get used to it. All this glory of light and color that must end. I question God each year—why? Why must it all end? Why must the trees be stripped, and the soil lie fallow? Why must the waters and skies grow wintery cold and ghostly?
All creation, says Paul, is subject to corruption, and all of it longs to be set free.
We humans are no different in some ways – our four seasons just take longer to cycle through. I am personally deep into fall and feel the same questions arise – why? Why must it all end? Why must the body fail? Why must the zeal of youthfulness end, the wisdom of age so often lie fallow?
Even while we long for freedom from the cycle of birth and death, the seasons God set in motion offer hope: seeds buried in the ground still carry life. Our bodies contain an eternal spring, even while our flesh is aging. “So,” Paul says, “we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day (2 Cor. 4:16).” These endings are only the beginnings of a life where death will no longer play any role in our lives. But until we get to see that reality, may God bless us with glimpses of the renewal going on in our hearts and souls.
PRAYER: Oh God of creation, help me look more deeply than my reflection; give me glimpses of the day-by-day renewal you are working into the soil of my heart and soul. You are the God of the seed and the God who will someday make all things new.
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Blogger Amy Clemens is the author of Walking When You’d Rather Fly: Meditations on Faith After the Fall. In it she explores childhood sexual abuse and how it impacted her faith (or lack thereof) for four decades. You’ll find not only her story, but better yet, the Big Story of God.
Check out Walking When You’d Rather Fly, and learn more about the book and Amy’s other ministries. You will also find her devotional work at Words of Hope.
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