Why the name?

Reflections after Seasons....
Have you heard the expression "they are seasoned"? Or they've had a lot of experience, or this isn't their first rodeo, or a number of other ways of saying someone ins't exactly young? Well I prefer to think of my self as "SEASONED"
I'm not old, just been around a while.. Over half a century... Whoa! That does sound old.
But when it comes to being seasoned, you hope with that you gain wisdom and experience that leads to knowledge that helps in decision making and helping others when needed or asked.

The seasons of life each bring something different.
The Spring of your life brings childhood, school, college, the security of your parents home for most.
The Summer of your life brings career, marriage and child rearing and hopefully service to others.
The Autumn of your life brings empty nest (usually) and hopefully more time to serve others and spend with your spouse and family. Work begins to wind down for some and you find your self with time on your hands.
The Winter of your life... well , I'm not there yet. But by watching my mom, it appears to me it can bring incredible loss and loneliness, but it can also bring wonderful peace and relaxation as you bask in the "golden years". And again a chance to serve others because you aren't bound to work like you had been in those "baby boomer" years of life. Or Summer and Autumn.

Autumm... my favorite time of year. The leaves are turning orange, red, gold.. all sorts of colors. Well, at least in the South and East and other parts of the US. Not necessarily here in the Dallas area. If we have color on our Bradford pears, I relish in it.
As a young teenager my favorite pasttime in the fall was walking in the woods behind our home in Arkansas dragging my feet through the leaves and talking to God.. about the future, my hopes, my dreams. Listening to the crackle of the leaves as I walked and the smells of the fall. Fires beginning in the fireplace, musty leaves, moist soil. All memories still very vivid almost 40 years later. ( Told you I was seasoned)
What elese comes with Autumn? Cooler temperatures. Bare trees. Rain. Football. Chili. Sweaters.
What about the Autumn of our lives? When we reach the Autumn of our lives, as things change sometimes it's hard to change with them. As women, Autumn represents, you've worked yourself out of a job: raising your children. It can represent a sense of loss, loneliness and for lack of a better description, just flat out boredom and feeling useless. Our husbands, bless their hearts, aren't really eqipped to deal with the new us. They are the same, they still have their work schedule but you on the other hand, don't have kids to run here and there, 20 loads of laundry a week and people shouting, "Mom, can I have a snack". We feel our "usefullness" is basically gone. I am a little odd maybe. Jerry and I didn't have empty nest completely until our youngest was 28. We had been married 36 years by this time. So we had had children in the home 31 years. No, that didn't make me more excited to see an empty nest. But I always knew the day would come and THAT was God's plan: For our 2 daughters to marry and begin a new cycle in their own lives. I was thrilled to see my daughters moving on to this new phase.
With the girls out of the hosue, I could sleep in if I wanted without guilt. I could watch a movie at 10 in the morning if I wanted and not feel guilty for not helping them at whatever task they were attacking that day.
So, that's the 'human' side of the Autumn of my life. But what about the Autumn in my spiritual life?
Autumn in my life said 2 things to me. 1: That I had already lived more than half my life (that's a sobering thought; when you realize you probably don't have much more than 30 years at most and if the next 30 go as fast as the first 50, it won't be long before you leave this life behind.)
2. That the only thing that was going to matter were the things that I had done that were eternal.
During the spring and summer of life we are often so busy or so young that we don't think about how everything we do needs to be with an eternal thought in mind. We are so caught up in the here and now, eternity seems like just that: An eternity away.
And then Autumn comes....and with it a wake up call. I have to do whatever I can to make a difference in the lives of those whom God sets in my path. I pray for divine appointments. I pray that God will use me to reach others. To make a difference in the lives of those I love and those I barely know. I want my life to have counted when "winter" comes. I want to mentor those young moms who feel this phase of life will never end and they'll never see the light at the end of the tunnel... that this crying infant will never grow up.. I want to tell them, this phase will be gone so fast, you will barely blink and they will be in college. Because I have been there. You do survive, your children survive and it will be a distant memory soon.
I can truthfully say I enjoyed EVERY phase of my children's lives. But this phase is the best for them! They are having families of their own, making a home, enjoying their spouse.
And I have to make this the best phase of my life as well.
I have to enjoy Autumn. Instead of letting my soul become dry and barren like the trees in the Ozarks after the first frost, I have to keep the soil of my soul moist by applying the Word to my life. By soaking my soul in the fresh latter rain of the Holy Spirit. By wrapping myself in the old familiar "sweater" that represents a loving Father's arms around me as I crawl into his lap and say "Dad, I need you to hold me right now and tell me I am still a vital tool in your kingdom. That you have a plan and a purpose for this "seasoned" person of the faith.
And I will be the loudest fan in the stands at the football game of your life, as I cheer you on to victory in your walk with the Lord. I will be your biggest supporter and coach. I'll help you up when you get knocked down. I'll remind you that greater is He who is in you than he that is in the world. And I will remind you of the reward that waits after we have run the race set before us.
Am I looking forward to winter. NO WAY! I want Autumn to last a very long time. You see.. I just got there. And I am excited. My time is now.
The best is yet to come. I believe it. I claim it. I walk in it. Every day!
God is good.... All the time.