"Falling"

I don't know where you live, but where I live here in the Chicago area, we have definitely hit the "fall" season. We have had a bit more wind the past couple of days and I've seen a lot more leaves falling off of the trees.  While in the car the other day with the kids, I saw a beautiful maple losing it's leaves and I said, "Isn't that beautiful?" Don't think the kids really responded...go figure.

Well, this whole leaves falling thing has me thinking about falling in general and our perception of things. I'm sure that some people probably looked at those same leaves falling, the ones I thought looked so beautiful, and they thought it looked depressing because it means winter is that much closer, or it reminded them of the falling leaves in their yard that are yet to be raked up. Funny how people can experience the same thing and have very different thoughts on it.

When you experience "falling" in your lives are you able to see the beauty in it, the lesson, or do you only see the negative side of things? We all go through times in our lives when the leaves are falling, so to speak. We have times when others look at what we're going through and think, "Wow, how do they get through that situation with so much grace." But, there are others who look at that same situation and think, "Well, I wonder what they did wrong to get in that situation," or something similar to this.

What is the difference between the person who can see the positive side of things and the person who tends to only see the negative? I ask myself this a lot. And, frankly, through the many spiritual counseling sessions I've shared with many, many people over the years, I find that many people who react negatively to "falling" in their lives have insecurities and unhappiness or unhealthiness in their body, mind, and/or spirit. And, on the other side, people who amaze me with the way they handle the "falling" in their lives tend to be deeply connected to their faith and to their faith community; they have spiritual friends they can call on when the "falling" begins; they know they can count on their faith to carry them through.

So, I wonder tonight, how do you react to the "falling" in your lives? If you find yourself complaining a lot, or seeing things very negatively, then let me encourage you to reconnect with your faith walk, your journey with Jesus. Get into God's Word. Find a spiritual friend who will walk with you and help you see your "falling" from a new perspective.

And, if you are one who is able to look at the "falling" in your life with grace and hope, then be that spiritual friend for someone else who is struggling. Be an encourager, as the apostle Paul tells us time and again in his letters to the early churches.

As you watch the leaves falling in these coming weeks, ask God to work in your body, mind, and spirit so that you can walk into winter with a transformed heart.
Peace, brothers and sisters.