Abundant Actions
What can we learn from the changing of the leaves and their release from the branches that have held them in place for two seasons? There is so much to gain as we reflect upon this process. Could it be that our Creator has set into motion the seasonal transitions to be an ongoing symbol of the beauty in each season and the necessity to embrace their correlating meaning and purpose?
This season I am clinging to the idea of givenness, release, and abundant mentality (phrase coined by Ann Voskamp from The Broken Way). These colorful, vibrant leaves give so much during autumn. They are a masterpiece of beauty as they dazzle us with their miraculous hues, mesmerizing us by the ability to change so drastically and brilliantly! They give us joy in the simple act of beholding their loveliness! And then they are released from the branches that once held them so securely. However, even in their given nature, there is life --- there is abundance for the future!
Interestingly, Britannica.com, describes the importance of the falling of the leaves. The leaves are unable to sustain the brutal conditions of winter which in return would cause the growth of the tree to be stifled and eventually to die if they were to remain on the branches. Without healthy foliage, there would not be photosynthesis which feeds the tree. The very act of the tree giving the leafage is a necessary action of self-protection.
Wow! Can you perceive where I am going with this analogy? Oh, it is so rich!
And add a further description from Britannica that the effects of summer often cause the leaves to become insect eaten, diseased or damaged. They go on to say “Dropping them gives the plant a fresh start in the spring.” Oh yes, the plot thickens for the correlation with our own lives…
“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.”
Isaiah 43:18-19
Life has a way of wearing us down to the point we hold so tightly to the very things that are killing us because our minds are set on scarcity and control.
Don’t let go… we might need that!
It’s too painful to release that person!
Hold on stubbornly to some semblance of control.
You’re asking too much! That’s the way I cope!
And the excuses of why we can’t let go could go on and on, but the bottom line is we don’t trust that it is best. What if we could learn the lesson of the leaves well? What if it became our mantra?
The act of releasing brings forth Fresh Starts and Abundance!
In the very act of its givenness, the tree is fortified and is granted new life --- an abundance that is displayed in the spring season. What about us? As we hand over the very things that have deceived us and are actually killing us, we are blessed with abundant life! As we live given… releasing that which our precious Lord identifies as “things” that are robbing us of the best life... we find more than we knew existed. It is the great paradox --- the more we trust and release and let go; the more joy, contentment, and abundant life follows!
Disney sometimes gets it right, cue Frozen’s “Let it go”. Seriously, release and take a deep breath, watching what our Creator is able to develop in our lives when we willingly give over what is no longer needed and is detrimental to our life. An existence that is overflowing with abundant bounty as we allow ourselves to be stripped of the vices and sins holding us back and succumb to His ways and His grace that is patiently waiting.
Think on it; let’s marinate our thoughts on it, and allow ourselves to be changed by this abundant mentality!