Dear Friends,
I don’t know about you, but I love living in a state where there are four seasons. Although all of them have their special attraction, I can’t but help to claim Autumn as my favorite. Why Autumn? Well, I love color, and our loving God provides such a variety of color in all of Nature. What an artist God is!
Another thing Autumn reminds me of is CHANGE, that most dreaded word. Although color is beautiful, it does warn us that CHANGE is in progress and it will soon lead to the loss of leaves for the trees, loss of warm weather for the vacationers, and a reminder that the cold of Winter is on its way. It also reminds us of dying.
Now that can mean actual dying, our thoughts of our own mortality, or dying to self. I would like to think now of the spiritual death, that dying to self and how CHANGE is a big part of it.
If you are like me, I am sure you have at times planned the next day for yourself, as you know that it will be a busy one. The night before always looks great for tomorrow’s activities. But Murphy’s Law reigns! From the moment you wake up, things continue to change, force you to make adjustments, ask for help, and wonder if you just shouldn’t just start all over again.
How do you deal with this type of situation?
Well, recently I experienced just such a day and CHANGE made all the difference in the world. I CHANGED how I handled what was crumbling at my feet; my plans were not God’s plan for the day. Fortunately, I had been able to spend some quiet days in prayer and reading the days prior to this day, so I tried to use what I had learned during that time to make it through all the CHANGES! I can happily report that I didn’t do too badly and in the midst of all that was happening, I discovered things about myself and others. Today I look back and am actually grateful that I had the experience.
What about you? How do you deal with change?
It could be a CHANGE in your plans, a work situation, a relationship, health, an attitude, and so on. There are two ways you can handle it: see it as God is in charge and things happen, take a deep breath, and put a smile on your face, OR, you are in charge, and you grumble and snap at folks and things all through the day. The first way is much better for your health and the health of those around you! With practice and dying to self you can CHANGE the way you react, let God be in charge.
Have a great week and enjoy all the color and change that comes your way this week.
Till next week,
Sister Theresita
