As I look out the window, I can see the leaves falling from the trees. It seems that each tree can produce thousands of leaves and when you live along the woods the number of leaves is unimaginable. The task of raking the leaves seems never ending and unfruitful until the tress are bare.

This time of the year we get to enjoy the beauty of God’s creation as His majestic trees show off their true colors. The fact is that during the summer months trees mask their true colors due to the abundant chlorophyll that gives the trees their green colored leaves. In fall when the leaves loose the abundance of chlorophyll the leaves reveal their true colors. We are blessed to live in an area where God’s majesty is displayed through His magnificent creation when a patchwork quilt of grandeur goes on display.

Not long after the trees put on their exhibition, they start to drop their leaves of splendor. The truth is that deciduous trees do not so much lose their leaves as they get rid of them. This active process is necessary for the tree to endure the harsh realities of winter and to make sure moisture is not lost from the presence of the leaves during the time of winter.

After the tress shed their leaves, they look baren. Winter is marked by the time when deciduous trees remain dormant until the start of spring. We may not like the sight of a dormant tree without leaves but it is part of their seasonal process to ensure growth can be maintained.

The active process of a tree shedding its leaves and the benefits that follow remind me of the action of a “prayer warrior.”  Prayer is often looked at as being passive but in reality, it is extremely active. Prayer has benefits like a tree shedding its leaves. Prayer is necessary for a disciple of Christ to sustain oneself through the harsh realities of life. Prayer may be thought of as a dormant act; it may not look glorious but it allows for the glorious to appear through access to the power of God in one’s life.

Today as you consider pausing at noon to Bend-A-Knee in prayer may you take advantage of God’s invitation to enter His Throne Room of Grace. Prayer is anything but dormant. It is a privilege and an honor to come before God Almighty seeking His presence with an attitude of submission that His will may be accomplished through your life. When you look at the bare trees may they remind you that the process is necessary for the tree to flourish, and may you be reminded that prayer holds the same truth for you in your relationship with the Creator God.

Stay connected to God & to others

God’s Peace,

Pastor Mike