A little Glory for all to see... (Day 4 of 31)

I boldly and proudly admit... in some ways, I have gloriously 'ruined' my daughter!  She, much like me, gets nearly giddy at the thought of decorating for a new season.  I make myself actually WAIT until October (or at least really really CLOSE to October) before I pull out my Fall decorations... For me - as I've mentioned nearly daily - it's my favorite!  For my daughter, however - it is simply the decorations that go up BEFORE all the Christmas fun!  So - the other day, when she spotted my box (OK - boxES) of Autumn decor, she got super excited!  I had hoped she would outgrow this and come to embrace Autumn in and of itself!  

With all the glory and warmth and color and scents that come with Fall... I fear for her to rush through it only lessens the effect it can have on her!  How often do we do this ourselves, in our own lives? Rush through something - a season, a task, an item on our Bossy lists of things to do, just to get to the NEXT thing!  We tend to try to rush through the changing to get to the new... but it takes time!  

I know it appears that suddenly - the trees are dripping in glory and leaves are falling to the ground... but there is a process that is going on underneath the scene preparing nature for the changes ahead!  If the changes happen gradually... naturally... the result may look like death for a moment - but fruitfulness will arise out of it!  If we rush through the changes... pushing and hurrying and not allowing the process to completely unfold within us... we take the risk that, on the other end of the change, the fruitfulness will not be as abundant!

So as I unpack the candles and the pumpkins and our Counting Blessings Box... we slow down... discuss the changes outside - and the changes inside.  We unpack tradition and thankfulness and memories of the where-we-came-from and how-far-we've-come, and that helps to prepare us for the what-comes-next unexpected that is just around the bend!

We light the scented candles, and hang the leaf garlands, and we take a moment and breathe... we catch a glimpse of a little bit of Glory for all to see - on the outside, and on the inside!

~Karrilee~