Autumn in the Desert Southwest is a time for exhalation. The incessant summer heat has passed—and we have survived.
We have been transported through a window of favor. There is sunshine to smile at not hide from.
The Rock Wren’s bounce shouts joy while the Mourning Doves careen on breezes that beckon—beckon us to begin those projects 110° heat kept us from.
Fall wildflowers grace us with their pink and yellow faces: Amaranth, with its lazy spires, sticky-stemmed Trailing Allionia, and Desert Marigold beaming up at us, delightful as an obedient child.
Even our landscape plants perk up and look more like their magazine counterparts.
Autumn gives us a break. A release and a remembrance of why we love it here.
But with the pause comes a sense of urgency, a heedfulness, as we note the light fades sooner each night (sunset already?)
There is so much that needs to be done in our newly compressed days, both physically and spiritually.
We need to sweep clean anything contrary to the Spirit of Christ that may have crept in over time. Strip off the doubts and worries that cling like sticky weed to the soles of our shoes.
Ask for the strength and determination we need to bestow our complete trust at His feet like a free will offering of old.
Complete trust in God is seeing beyond what is—to what will be.
It is seeing through the haze of the bleached summer sky to behold autumn’s vibrant blue. That intense blue we forgot about but was there all along, like our ever-present God waiting to shine in the lives of those who trust Him.
Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass. (Psalm 37:5)
The autumn breezes change tempo each week: first slow, then twirl, then run and LEAP, then slow once more in an ethereal dance of desert glory.
For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end. (Hebrews 3:14)
Autumn in the desert Southwest is our second spring. But a spring without the frigid gales coming from behind winter.
The mounding daisy-like Viguera draws insects with its honeyed scent. Pungent yellow Pectis spills like paint on the canvas of the desert floor and the bright yellow buttons of the tiny Wholly Daisy are scattered like throw-rugs in the dirt. What a grand sight! (But woe to those with allergies.)
Maroon tufts of feathery Purple Muhly grass dot the landscape along with the blue-green Burr Sage and the coral-orange Globemallow.
The land is awash with color and purpose that may have gone unnoticed for most of the year.
And the plain brown moth that entertained us last spring is back again ricochetting off lampshades and trying to morph into our TV’s. The muffling sound their bronze wings makes on the windowpane at night are not unlike our own attempts to live life without full surrender to God. We expend a lot of energy but keep bumping into the same barriers making no progress at all.
Why isn’t this working?—bump.
I can do this on my own—bump.
I want it to happen this way—bump.
Fixed in a place of our own making; it’s no wonder we keep smacking the glass. No matter how hard we try to squeeze reality into our notion of what is best for us, without God doing the shaping, we end up with a squashed mess.
But when we keep our gaze fixed on the Author and Finisher of our faith, all the fears and doubts—those coyotes yip-yipping in the distance—can’t pack up and encircle our lives and frighten us into making decisions based on feelings.
Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. (Psalm 3:5–6)
He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord. (Psalm 112:7)
Autumn in the desert is both a relief and bittersweet.
Those waving grasses that sprang up overnight, Muhly, Gramma, and Rye, will dry up just as fast.
The Queen caterpillars rush to gorge on green, their transformation mere weeks away.
The air is filled with the drone of various bees desperate for gold dust before the flowers turn to seed. And highways of marching ants stockpile for the days ahead.
Nothing stays.
What God has put in the time clock of nature, He has put before us too. But sometimes, all we want is to stay comfortable where we’re at. In a perpetual autumn. A place where we can claim control.
But to stay is stagnation.
Only as you and I trust and grow and look beyond ourselves can we attain greater heights on wings of faith. We reap the fruit of the choices we make whether we follow an emotionally-driven doctrine of self or the straight paths of the Word of God and thereby feed the next generation by our example.
Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the Lord, till he come and rain righteousness upon you. (Hosea 10:12)
So as we pick the last of our garden harvest and watch the Red-tailed Hawks, in playful arcs, sail the clear sky above, let us thank God for this land and our place in it.
The brush of air on our skin whispers winter but now the once-sweltering garage needs a thorough cleaning, the front porch cries for paint, and as we tackle that roof job we’ve avoided all summer, let us hold tight to the knowledge that no matter where we are, or what is placed before us each day—with God at the center of our lives—we are right where we ought to be.
Our purpose is sealed in Him.
In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise. (Ephesians 1:13)
Abiding in the Vine,
~ Gleniece
The post “The Light Fades Sooner Each Night” first appeared on Desert Rain.
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How pretty. 🙂
Thank you, Brenda.
Have a wonderful day.
I enjoyed how you said it is a clean sweep of things not in Christ. Very powerful! Thanks for sharing with #SocialButterflySunday this week! Hope to see you link up again 🙂
So glad you liked this, Kelly. And thank you for hosting #SocialButterflySunday. I’ll be back again. You have a wonderful day.
You are welcome, Ifeoma. I appreciate you stopping by here, too. God has indeed blessed us to be able to communicate with each other across so many miles. I thank you for your kind words.
You have a wonderful day.
Hi Gleniece, so good visiting you too! I don’t think I have been to your online home before.
Thank you for stopping over earlier and leaving such encouraging words too. I means a lot!
I like the attention you draw back to personal reflection and taking time to clean up our closets before the Lord.
Thank you for sharing.
God Bless
I love your description of the desert. I live up in Vermont and have never been to the desert, so it was interesting to see the differences in our ideas of fall. Here, instead of coming out from the shade, we are all starting to bundle up and go inside for some hot chocolate. So thanks for taking me someplace warmer for a bit 🙂
I’m so glad you got to experience (at least in writing) a bit of the beauty of the desert. God has blessed each of us with something different to be thankful for. Whether it’s sunshine to smile at or blankets and hot chocolate–it’s all good.
Thank you, Catherine, for stopping by.
It’s so great to visit your blog. I love you words, “Complete trust in God is seeing beyond what is-–to what will be.” Beautiful! Here’s to looking in trust at what will be!
How lovely it is to have you here, Valerie. I really appreciate your thoughtful words. It has taken me a long time to lay aside my expectations and fully trust God for the outcome in all things. But the more I have yielded, the more peaceful I have become.
May we both continue to be trusting sisters-in-Christ!
This is so beautifully written…and what a lovely reminder to “… take this time to sweep clean anything contrary to the Spirit of Christ that may have crept in over time. Strip off the doubts and worries that cling like stickyweed to the soles of our shoes…”
Thank you, Ariete. I’m so glad you enjoyed this. You have a wonderful day and thanks for taking the time to say hello.
The beauty of God can be seen in so many things and in so many different ways. I love the fall because of the beauty of the trees. I love the spring because everything is coming to life. Summer is beautiful, it’s time for outdoor gatherings. Then winter is beautiful with the pure white snow….sorry I tried to choose one lol!! Blessings
Hello, mycreatorscreation, so glad you could stop by. Sometimes it’s hard to pick just one of God’s wonderful gifts to us. I like your attitude. Let’s choose them all!
Hope you’ll stop by some time and see what I’m doing at mycreatorscreation. http://leoladurant.com/
Leola, thank you for the invite. ( I actually checked out your site before you asked. :-))
I loved your beautiful photography in The Wild Life, and I also felt a similar stirring in your poem in Anxious Moments. Thank you for your heart that longs for the righteousness of God.
Thank you Gleniece, Our God is an Awesome God. I’ll be stopping by your site from time to time also. I just saw that Juvenile Eagle a few day ago…my friend and I. It was a beautiful experience.
Gorgeous! Isn’t our desert a glorious place? Thank you for blessing me with your beautiful post!
Blessings and smiles,
Lori
Hello, Lori! It’s great to have you here. Thank you so much for your kind words.
Yes, God has blessed us with the unique beauty of this place. Originally from California, it took me a while to appreciate the desert’s subtle charm. I’m thankful God opened my eyes to see it. 🙂
Beautifully written, Gleneice! Fall is my favorite season here in Ohio, too. And, I also feel that spiritual urgency and energy in fall… Hurry, the spiritual days are shorter, too. Thank you!
Yes, you are right. Our spiritual days are getting shorter. We must stay ever so vigilant. We have a glorious kingdom awaiting us if we do.
Thank you for stopping by, Kathleen.
Gleniece, your words highlight fall’s beauty and invite me into its warmth … welcoming in the change of season, letting go of the weeds of summer. Thank you, Gleniece, for sharing your heart at #IntentionalTuesday on Intentionally Pursuing. : )
You are welcome, Crystal. I thank you for stopping by and encouraging me with your comment and your smile.
Rhiannon Rae, I’m so glad you enjoyed this. Thank you for the kind words. No matter where we live, God has truly blessed us. Sometimes we just have to look a little harder to see the beauty.
Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
That was an amazingly, beautiful description of this season in the desert and trusting God. You have a way with words and it was an encouragement! Be blessed! #IntentionalTuesday
What sweet words. Thank you, wmunsell11. We are indeed sisters in the spirit. You have a wonderful day and thank you for commenting.
This was lovely, truly a gift. Psalm 37:5 ministered peace to me… thank-you, dear sister.
What a beautiful picture you paint…or more literally, write! I love the fall. We used to live in the Fresno, CA area, so I can relate to the hot, 110 degree summers. Autumn was always such a welcome relief!
Blessings, Joan
Thank you for the kind words, Joan. Yes, fall is my favorite season too. I look forward to it every year.
God has blessed each of us with something glorious to behold wherever we happen to live.
Thank you so much for stopping by