Colorful Seasons

     Isn't it interesting how our personal life has seasons just like nature does?  We have just come from our fall break and we got to see part of the Appalacian Mountains as they were beginning to change colors.  Every day we were there the colors became more vibrant.  It was like a beautiful present God was unwrapping before us.
   
     But you know what?  In order for those gorgeous fall colors to happen there are other things that have to take place.  In the Spring and the Summer there have to be some rainy days.   I heard my Mom comment the other day that we just haven't had enough rain for our trees to be colorful.  We need the rainy days.

   Some seasons are wins.  Things are all going the right way and situations fall in to place with little or no trouble at all.  And other seasons are totally different.  It seems like whatever we do we can't seem to get it right.  The harder we try the messier it gets.  I have had a period of messing things up.  It is not a fun place to be.  As I was talking with God about it this morning He blessed me with some insight that truly touched my heart.  Here it is...maybe it will bless you too.  Life is full of mistakes.  We will make them.  It is what we do with them that makes the difference.  Own the mistakes, learn from them, and move forward.  Beating myself up and receiving condemnation is not from God.

     Ironically, it is beginning to rain outside as I type.  When I look back on this time I think it will look a lot like a rainy day.  But I wonder if life is like the trees.  Maybe its when we haven't had enough of these personal challenges that our colors don't develop the way they should.  Maybe we need to look at this in a different way.  When we fall short or mess up we should view it like the rain. We need to realize that this is just growing us, so that in the next season we will show those deep rich colors we were created to demonstrate.  This rainey season is only making us more beautiful.