Autumn
Autumn is a time of transition... a scary time for some... an abundant time for others... a promise of conclusion... a threat of insufficient provision... a busy time. It comes at different times in different hemispheres. I grew up in Indiana, in the heartland of America. Autumn is typically a short season there: summers are often long, hot, and humid while winters are extended periods of bitter cold. Spring jumps out of nowhere, and Autumn falls quickly upon the residents of this Midwestern state. There is no warning. One week the ambient air is hotter than your body temperature and the next week you could be shivering in a thick jacket. Autumn never looks the same, but it always accomplishes the same thing.
There is an Autumn to life. The seeds planted earlier in life are bearing fruit. Some fruit is sweet and continues to renew life. Other fruit is bitter and clings to the palate with an aftertaste that ruins more savory flavors. The aged and compassionate warn others to be careful as they sow the seeds in their own lives. But few listen and fewer still apply this wisdom as they push towards their own personal Autumn.
And their own personal Autumn indeed awaits them. In this season of life, people see the approaching season and hurry to make up for lost time or misappropriated resources. They feel the sense of urgency, knowing that a time approaches when all they can do is wait... wait until the next season of New Life enters the land. Each life contains miniature “autumns”, where one season ends and another begins. Yet to all lives, there is but one Autumn, into which there is but one, last chance to prepare for the coming Winter.
There is also an Autumn to the Body of Christ. It is a time when leaves fall from the trees that bore them. The leaves fall to the ground and disappear from view. They cover the ground as one and are moved around by the Wind. They become one with the Earth, from which the trees themselves draw nourishment.
The Body of Christ is currently in the Autumn of life. Like the lives of Its members, the Body has gone through miniature Autumns in the past... times of transition that preceded times of revival. But this Autumn is different. It is the Autumn of the Last Harvest, the age of Jude, a season that precedes the age of Revelation. It is a busy time... a time of regrets and a time of joy... time of preparation for the next season... a time that is not too late to gather provisions for ourselves and others as we join our Father in the work He has been doing since long before we were born!
As a child, I did not like Autumn. It represented the approaching Winter, and I wanted to forever live in Spring and Summer. But then I discovered what Autumn truly meant, and I became a convert. I love Autumn and the opportunity it brings to still “get it right”, so the silent winter months could be enjoyed. May the Lord grant His Bride all the resources necessary to make final preparations before the Wedding Feast, especially His omnipotent direction and Intimate Presence! We, His Bride, have entered Autumn.
Winter is rapidly approaching but it is not here yet.
copyright ©2020 Mitchell Malloy (http://mitchellmalloyblogspot.com/)
