Never Leave You- Trust

 Trust Him- Jesus Will Never Leave You!

Fall is my favorite time of the year.

I can’t begin to describe the splendor of this year’s fall canvas. Vibrant hues of bright yellows, delicious oranges, explosive reds and emerald greens kissed a flamboyant blue sky. We watched brilliant golden leaves flutter and twirl their way to carpet the ground. Have you ever noticed how loud the dry leaves are? Trust me, squirrels sound large and ominous when they are gathering acorns in a pile of noisy dry leaves.

 

Yet, knowing that winter is coming casts a shadow of sadness on the splendors of the extravagant vistas that greet me as I twist and turn along mountain roads. I know that trees will soon exchange their glorious garments of ruby red, fiery orange and sunny yellows for nakedness. Stripped of their beauty and glory, they’ll face the cold—alone.

 

All summer long the trees are dressed in their finest attire. Lush leaves dance and wiggle at the end of finger thin branches. I think it is sad that then when it begins to get cold; the leaves loosen their grip and leave. Stark and naked the trees are left alone to face the cold with only short, sun filled days. I want to scream at the leaves…don’t leave now. It’s going to get cold…wrap yourself around the tree…protect it from the cold winds.

 

But the reality is…trees don’t need the protection of fragile leaves. Trees are designed by God to resist the cold. And what I forget as I stare into naked branches on a cold winter day is the reality of a plan that is beyond what I can see. A meticulous plan, strategized by our loving Father and held in place by His laws as the Earth orbits the Sun. And God has a plan for your life, beyond what you can see. You must trust Him!

 

I realize that nature pays attention to the signals that God has orchestrated. When the daylight hours shrink and the hours of darkness increase, it is a signal for many types of trees to shut down their food factory.

 

Food Factory

Ask your kids or your grandchildren, they can tell you that the fragile, beautiful leaves covering the branches are there for a purpose—to produce food. The leaves use water provided by the roots and carbon dioxide from the air to produce glucose and oxygen through a process called photosynthesis. The tree uses the glucose for growing and storing and gives off the oxygen. Thank you trees! Thank you God for your amazing plan.

 

As the tree shuts down its food factory, the green chlorophyll decomposes, then the yellow carotenoid pigment that has been in the leaf all along give the leaves their bright yellow and orange color. In other trees, the leaves use the extra sugar to produce anthocyanin pigments, which turn the leaves their fiery red color. It really is a fascinating plan. The leaves cannot survive the cold, but the roots and limbs can and do. The leaves turn loose, fall and are blown away by the wind. The trees stand erect and tall, naked and leafless. Yet while they look dead, they are not. And while winter may look like a season of death, instead it is a season of rest. Rest is part of God’s plan too!

 

Rest is part of God’s plan for you as well. I’m not referring necessarily to inactivity as much as I am a state of mind. You can trust and rest in Him because He is with you. You may look around and feel alone, but you’re not! He is with you. You can relax your hold on everything you are trying to keep from falling apart–everything you are trying to keep together.

 

When people desert you; hold onto Him.

When jobs and doors close; hold onto Him.

When the winds howl and voices accuse; hold onto Him.

Hold onto His promise. It’s an old one. It’s stood the test of time.

Deuteronomy 31:6 Be strong and courageous.

Do not be afraid or terrified because of them,

for the Lord your God goes with you;

he will never leave you nor forsake you.”

 

 

 

My resources for this article and some interesting articles about why leaves change colors.

https://dnr.state.il.us/education/classrm/kids_for_trees/pdf/Unit2_1.pdf

 

https://www.sciencemadesimple.com/leaves.html