First United Methodist Church
310 North Rowley, Mitchell, SD 57301
Rev. Keith Nelson, Lead Pastor
keith@mitchellfumc.org
605.630.6586
This is certainly a great time of year in that there are such beautiful colors all around. I have several friends who are pretty good with a camera, so I know this is a great time of year to check out their Facebook pages because there will be a lot of beautiful nature picture displayed there. Some of you in our church family have posted pictures of the fall beauty from your yard, your neighborhood, or from your travels. It is a beautiful time of year!!
It also seems that this is the time of year where I will hear the comment made, “Why can’t this colorful beauty be a year-round thing?” Now, I am no botanist or plant biologist so I don’t know the intricacies of plant life. But I do know there are reasons in nature why the Fall colors only appear at a certain time of year. The simple answer I would give is, it’s not the right season.
A week or two ago I was out for my morning run and I noticed several trees. A couple of them had pretty much changed to their beautiful fall colors but another tree right there with them was still displaying mostly green leaves. I wondered about this for a bit. Why would one tree not be making the change in colors when the other trees around it were clearly into the fall “change?”
There were two answers that came to my mind. 1. Keith, you can’t see what might be going on deep within that tree. Maybe the transformation is taking place, it’s just at a level, or depth, that isn’t visible yet. 2. It’s not the right season.
As I pondered these thoughts about these trees, a new question entered my mind. “Do you suppose the same answers might apply to people?” Think about it…we’ve all done it. We’ve all looked at a person and thought to ourselves… “They have such potential…why can’t they see it…why are they doing that…why are they wasting their time, energy, skill, ability, love, faith, etc., doing that? The answer might be that God is at work bringing transformation to that person’s life, it’s just at a deeper level than what we can see. Or it might be that it’s just not the right season in the person’s life.
Like the tree I wondered about, there was probably a force at work that I wasn’t aware of. The same, I believe, is true in people’s lives. As United Methodists, that’s what we call Prevenient Grace. God is at work in a child, youth, or adult’s life in ways that we can’t always see. But it’s not our perspective that counts…it’s God that sees and brings transformation into reality. I’m hoping and believing that God is still at work within me, creating the thing of beauty that God knows is there. I believe the same is true for each of us…and even for our Church.
Serving Together,
Pastor Keith