Reader's Ruminations ..

18 September 2011
Team Reader, Diana Lowry
Embracing Autumn
It may only be the middle of September but there is no doubt that summer is over and autumn is upon us. While I love summer, with its opportunity to sit and feel the heat of the sun and to enjoy the long light evenings, autumn is my favourite season. Some years ago I mentioned this to someone and she said that she hated autumn because she looked at the leaves on the trees turning brown and thought only of death. This amazed me because I think that one of the delights about living in Epping is seeing the leaves on the trees turn from green to wonderful shades of yellow and orange and brown. They may be dying in one sense but they also speak to me of a Creator whose attention to detail is amazing. Why should the leaves turn these beautiful colours as they die? Why don’t they just dry up and fall off. I know all about the biology of what is happening but that does not explain their beauty. And in their dying, the leaves fall to the ground and are broken down into organic matter to support the plants and trees, giving a foretaste of resurrection. Some people don’t like autumn because they see it as the prelude to winter, to dim days and dark nights, cold and snow, torrential rain and battering winds. That is true of course but spending our time looking ahead all the time stops us from taking time to enjoy ‘now’. As I travel my faith journey I am constantly reminded that God often takes us along one day at a time. He sees the bigger picture but He wants us to trust Him and follow where He leads, even if we can’t see clearly where we are heading.

Autumn is also a time of new beginnings – children going to school for the first time, or leaving home to go to university, a step into adulthood. This can be a challenging time for faith, living away from one’s Christian family and stepping out alone. I well remember my first evening at university – a group of us met up in the college bar (where else?) and started chatting. We came from all parts of England but we soon discovered that we had something important in common: we were all Christians. Some of us were tempted to think: “Are they ‘proper’ Christians like me?” but when Sunday came we were all up early discussing which church we could go to. I was a young Christian worshipping in a house church at home and hadn’t really given much thought to places of worship at Uni. Still some of my new friends had done some research and we set off across Regent’s Park to All Souls’, Langham Place, opposite the BBC. Over the three years that we spent in London, All Souls’ and its sister church, St Helen’s Bishopsgate, became our spiritual homes. Not only did University teach us how to study and think, but those years also gave us a grounding in our faith. I hope and pray that this may be true for our young people going to university this year.

The autumn is also a time when people are prepared for confirmation and for all this is an important step of faith. Time spent in preparation gives the opportunity to hear others’ stories of faith and often gives us the opportunity to look back and be amazed at what God has done for us. So as you see the leaves on the trees turn their glorious colours take the opportunity to give thanks to God for all that He means to you.

Diana Lowry

[Top]