I’m just about done styling my table for Fall. One of my most fun things to do is
change out decor for the new season (see image below). And, if that season happens
to be fall, it’s even more fun because of all the colors that this season offers! This year,
I’m leaning into the pigments from the anthocyanins (more below) for my color palate.
We’re not yet into fall here in Texas, but the recent change in temperatures are
definitely promising. Teasing, inching their way into cooler numbers. The science lover
in me decided to review the chemistry behind this process. I learned that the cooler
temperatures will catalyze the breakdown of chlorophyll, leaving behind the yellows,
oranges, reds and purples that I so love. The vibrant color changes are from the
unmasking of carotenoids (yellows, oranges) and anthocyanins (deep reds, purples,
blues) during this season.
As I arrange the flowers on my table centerpiece, I ponder these changes in nature that
make up my favorite season. The growth of summer giving way to change in the
autumn. There’s something about anticipating change in our lives that’s very exhilarating,
especially the opportunity to dream in vibrant color. The colors that can take your
breath away in their unparalleled beauty.
In pondering the process of change, l don’t want to miss saying that there are
definite times of hiddenness and preparation, where areas that need to be pruned (Jn
15:11-5) for growth and greater fruitfulness are brought to light. There’s a stripping
away and shedding. However, today, my thoughts are being led to focus on the beauty
that can also be unmasked during this process. Beauty that can be unveiled just like
the riot of autumn hues that burst forth as a result of the unmasking of carotenoids
and anthocyanins in nature.
To begin with, I’m reminded that when God shines through us during seasons of change,
there can be vibrant displays of beauty, even in the middle of transformation. That
is the nature of the God we worship. The One whose strength shines through in our
weakness (2Cor 12:9). The One who transforms us from glory to glory (2 Cor 3:18).
The One who plants us as oaks of righteousness for the display of his splendor(Isa
61:3). So we can trust the process that He initiates and carries through (Phil1:6).
Speaking of beauty that can be unmasked during the process of change, I am also
reminded of the beauty of that which stays. The unmasking of the firm foundations
that are anchors in these seasons. The times we spent with Him and in the Word that
wrote indelible words on our hearts so that we wouldn’t be shaken during times of
storm, which we know the process of transformation can sometimes feel like. The
beauty of the eternal Truths that have been deeply embedded that can’t be removed
(Matt 7:24-25). Those Truths, shining through us, add to that glorious burst of
beauty, just like my favorite fall colors on display.
Ultimately, the biggest treasure unmasked during the process of transformation is a
deeper intimacy with the Lover of our souls, the One who created us and knows all the
places of our hearts. The One whose infinite love offers to heal and redeem the things
we can’t we do on our own. Sometimes, the journey of change involves dreams that
God puts in our hearts, and following Him into the unknown introduces us to more
facets of himself.
More love, more grace, more mercy, more power, a myriad mores, again and again.
The more we lean in, the more we get to see of the kaleidoscopic beauty of the One
who is altogether lovely. The combinations of those images of beauty are infinite, and
He chooses to continue to unmask Himself to us, all the way into eternity. I am
mesmerized, and all I can do is to ask Him to hold me close because I don’t ever want
to pull my gaze away.
