My family will be spending our first Winter in the Pacific Northwest.  People have been reminding us to enjoy the Summer because the long rainy season will be coming.  Sometimes 30 days can go by in a row without seeing the sun.

I was struck this week by the beautiful Fall transition.  I have lived in places where trees turn colors in the Fall, but it was different this year.

I’m not dreading the rainy season because I can’t take my eyes off those trees.  Some trees which I never noticed are bursting into such vibrant colors of yellow and red.  God’s grace is so apparent.  It can be depressing moving from Summer to Winter.  The leaves on all the trees are dying.  Yet, God has created this time of year to excite us and not send us into depression.

The time when trees are partially dying is a time when I see their most vibrant beauty.  The summer is over but the beauty is just as stunning.  Life is the same way.  Our summer is over, we do not live in the garden of Eden, but God graciously created another way.  Thank you Jesus for the grace we see in simple shades of red and yellow.

The following quote from Charles Spurgeon came from reflecting upon Psalm 89:29.  The verse states, “I will establish my offspring forever…”

Saints are a race that neither death nor hell can kill. - Charles Spurgeon

Excerpt taken from William Wilberforce’s book Real Christianity (p. 126).  Wilberforce wrote this in the late 1700’s while a part of British Parliament and experiencing severe health problems.  Wilberforce was instrumental in stopping the brutal slave trade throughout the British Empire.

In moments of clarity, we are reminded that Jesus possessed little, yet He never complained.  And if we findourselves in circumstances of greater difficulty than the normal ups and downs of daily life, we deal with these difficulties through the filter of our vision of Christ on the cross.  What He suffered for our benefit outweighs almost anything we must deal with.  We face challenges and difficulties as part of God’s plans and purposes for our life, knowing that in the midst of difficulty, He is there.  We have confidence that even though we might not understand everything that happens to us, God will work all things out in a way that accomplishes His purposes.  If this means we go through disappointment, illness, shame or poverty, we are able to trust Christ.  He is the One who went before and will bring us through. In ways beyond comprehension, there is a sense of God’s grace and peace in the midst of difficulty.

At least 60 entire albums are at your fingertips for free. Derek Webb has started a website called noisetrade.com. Artists such as Derek Webb (from Caedmon’s Call), Six Pence, Waterdeep, Alli Rogers and Jill Philips have free albums online. The philosophy behind the site is that you can either pay what you want for the album or you can tell three friends about the album and download the mp3 version for free. Why would a site do this? The idea is that people are going to share music anyway, why not do it legally.

Thanks Derek and everyone involved!
-TimK