Here in Maryland, as I write these words, it’s October and autumn’s
glory is unfolding before our eyes. It
begins slowly; we notice an isolated tree starting to change color and then
day-by-day it quietly spreads; color seemingly descends from the sky. The highest branches often turn first (the
top of the canopy is more exposed) but the Artist of Autumn continues to work until the entire landscape, which was lush and green not all that long ago,
is now afire in hues of orange, yellow, gold, and red. The display only lasts a short time before
the brighter colors give way to the dull hues of November and the barrenness of
the winter months sets in—when only the hardy pines and other conifers stay
green.
The whole process happens without us giving it much
conscious thought. We go on about our daily routines of living, and then suddenly,
one day we are driving along, and we look up at just the right time and a patch
of color peeking out from the green catches our attention and captivates our
imagination. A while later, perhaps we
come around a bend and behold a scenic vista overlooking a valley with the Sun
hitting it at just the right angle—and we are undone. With the Psalmist we echo:
The heavens proclaim the glory of God… the
firmament declares his handiwork. —Psalm 19:1
Science can explain what’s going on. Triggered by longer nights and cooler
temperatures, deciduous trees start to get ready for winter. The photosynthetic activity wanes, and the chlorophyll
pigment that produces the green color gives way to other chemicals present in
the leaves that lead to the colors we associate with autumn. The exact timing
of the change and intensity of the colors vary from year to year depending on
the weather conditions experienced during the summer and fall, but we can count
on the fact that come October the leaves are going to start to change color and
we’ll be treated to autumnal splendor for yet another year.
After that, the trees will drop their leaves and hunker down
for the winter—and we will all be raking like crazy in a few weeks J. In the winter, the
trees around here will look pretty dead, but, of course, they really
aren’t. They are just lying dormant for
a season; they actually need this time to prepare for spring and the next
season of growth. Just as we can count
on the leaves falling in the fall, assuming the tree is healthy, you can expect
that come next spring, buds will appear and new leaves will follow as the whole
cycle of life begins anew.
So science has a
pretty good handle on what happens to
the trees, how it happens, and even when it will happen, but it doesn’t
begin to explain why it happens the
way it does. No, delving into the why
question requires something deeper. It takes
faith[1]
to ask why—even if the question often
goes unanswered.
Have you ever wondered why
autumn unfolds as it does? It certainly didn’t have to unfold this way each
year. God the creator didn’t have to
design these trees so that in the process of them doing what they were created
to do and hunkering down for the winter months, we humans are treated to a spectacular
display every autumn. But God has put this in place, almost as if
he knew that we would enjoy it so. And
the Almighty’s hunch must have been on target—try getting a room anywhere in
the Shenandoah Valley right now!
When we view life
through the eyes of faith, a whole
new dimension of reality dawns. The glory of autumn is no accident; it is a
glimpse of the glory of God.
Glory is the
essence of what something or who someone is.
 |
| The glory of autumn. |
Every tree in the forest is unique in the way it changes
color in the fall. We can say that each
tree reflects God’s glory in its own distinct way. By itself, it has beauty that we recognize
when we see it, but when it joins with an entire forest, that beauty is
magnified and we get the views that take our breath away—we behold the glory of autumn.
If it’s true for trees, then how much more must it be true
for human beings—the pinnacle of creation.
By ourselves we are wondrously made, but when we join together with one
another and connect with God, we rise to a whole different level of living—we
come fully alive.
Says St. Irenaeus, “The glory of God is a human being fully alive and the life of a human being
is the vision of God.” With due
deference to the Saint, I might say it this way:
God is glorified when we are fully ourselves and we become most
fully ourselves as we behold God’s glory and reflect it to the world in our own
unique way.
In Jesus Christ, we see the perfect reflection of God—the
glory of God. We learn from the example of Jesus and others in Scripture, who
each saw glimpses of that glory and reflected it in their own unique way in a
specific place and time. (Hebrews 11 contains
a list of examples.) But we also see plenty
of glimpses of glory in this life. There
are people, places, and moments along our journey that help us connect with and
experience God more fully. Autumn leaves are just one example of the glory that
surrounds us—if we can just train our eyes to see. I urge us all to take time to discover and
savor those gifts. Live life with full
intensity. Become all God has created
you to be.
Reflect God’s glory to the world! —2
Corinthians 3:18
[1] While I say takes faith in something to ask why, I
also recognize that some would not call that something “God”.
No comments:
Post a Comment