Growing up, my dad used to tell me that if I didn’t like the weather here in Texas, just wait a minute. It’ll change.

Yup. Dad was right about that and about lots of other stuff too. Case in point: yesterday it was a balmy 86 degrees and humid. I sat outside until the sweat trickled down my back and the mosquitoes found me. Today it’s a balmy 56 degrees, wet, and clammy. The front that blew in overnight did more than almost blow our patio chairs into the pool (Thanks, Lord, that I didn’t have to go deep sea diving to fish them out this morning!). In one night’s time, the leaves of our lonely sweet gum tree are already changing color.

I like the fall season before it gets too cold. Unfortunately, in Texas we pretty much have two seasons: Hot and Cold. We get a very brief span of time when we can sit or walk or play or skip outside and revel in all God’s creation without getting dehydrated or frostbitten. (Confession: frostbitten to me is anything below 65 degrees. My hands can’t take the cold!)

During this time frame, the trees go through a mute transformation. The colors here in North Texas are not as vivid as the ones in Maryland and Connecticut, but they are there nonetheless. I started thinking about transformations.

Catepillars…into butterflies. Tadpoles…into frogs. Bright green leaves of summer….bare branches of winter. A person without hope…into a Christ follower, filled with hope.

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. Romans 12:2

When my mind gets in a rut, the verse above helps me grab hold of the truth. Just like the tree in my front yard, Jesus transforms me. The tree goes from the green glory of summer to a burst of joyful yellow and red, to a tired brown, and then it is leafless, quiet, and restful. It waits, biding its time until the Lord calls out another season of growth. I am like that tree. My spiritual journey winds through seasons. Lately I’ve been in a tired, restful, introspective season. I have a sense that God is going to continue to do great things in my heart, if I only will be still and let him work.

I stand still, arms outstretched to heaven just like the branches of the tree in my front yard. Expectant. Hopeful. Glad to shed my leaves and just let my heart drink in the Lord.

What season are you in these days?