My Favorite Season … has a dark side

The darkness is growing … More darkness than light

Tomorrow, September 22, at 9:54pm Eastern time, the Sun and the Earth will be in Equinox … where the Sun is directly in line with the equator. It is when days have the same among the daylight minutes as nighttime. And for the next two seasons, the daylight hours will slowly become less and less. Darkness will begin to monopolize the minutes of the day.

But this will not last. Eventually Fall yields to Winter, and Winter will end, Spring will roll around, and then daylight minutes will once again be more than nighttime minutes.

But Fall is my favorite season. Summer is fun for getting outside, recreating on the lake and elsewhere. Spring brings flowers, new life, and a freshness to the world. And Winter is that cuddle with your love by the fire sipping cocoa, just staring at the lights on your Christmas tree, and wondering what is in the wrapped boxes under the said tree. But Fall – crispness, hiking while leaves fall around you, wearing sweaters, and soaking in the wonder of leaves changing colors to a glory only belonging to the artistic Creator.

And for our coffee fanatics – Pumpkin Spice is back. Originally the Epicurious recipe included cinnamon, ginger, allspice, nutmeg, and cloves – but no Pumpkin. Weird.

But the longer nights and encroaching darkness could get depressing if I didn’t realize that this is a temporary circumstance – light will return. Our nights are not permanent. And the same is true on our journey of life. For God’s children, no matter what you are going through, no matter how dark, how bleak the circumstances are – we can trust our Lord that it is not forever.

Weeping may tarry for the night,

    but joy comes with the morning.

Psalm 30.5b

Sometimes it seems this world is getting darker and darker. Nature is fighting back (storms, volcanoes, etc.), people are getting edgier and it seems anger is everywhere, violence, morality challenged, and more and more of … darkness. But our God wins. Lightness will prevail. It drives away the darkness, not the other way around.

So trust His goodness. Believe in His sovereign control and His promise of making all things new. Grab hold of the peace He leaves with us. And remember He will never leave us or forsake us.

So enjoy the Fall – snap those instagramable photos – unpack the sweaters – and enjoy the season.

Todd

Post Script – you want to see the best time for leave watching? Check out this interactive map by smokymountains.com.