​“The secret of surviving the harsh climate, is not to resist it, or resent it, but to embrace, and live in harmony with it….”
Wise words from an old mountain-dweller.
And good to remember on a cold, damp, dreary day
in the north of England.

We British have elevated grumbling about the weather to an art form,
​but for those of us who claim to be Christ-followers, maybe it has too high a price tag.
​Think what happened to the Israelites as a result of their grumbling!

As we approach winter, let's take some time to think how we can embrace &
live in harmony with the season.
​And importantly, what can we find today to be grateful for?
​What comes out of our mouths is important, we have the opportunity to influence the spiritual climate around us - positively or negatively. So let's be people who charge the atmosphere with joy.
Now there's a challenge for the onset of winter!​

Autumn is well under way, trees are resplendent in red & gold,
​birds are gathering for their winter migration, and fungi nestle in hidden places.
It's a vibrant time of the year, full of redolant images.​

One of the ways we can live in harmony with the season, is by letting it inspire creative activities.
We are made in the likeness of the Great Creator; creativity is in our genes.
Photography, music, writing, wool craft, basket work, gardening, woodwork, cooking, model-making,.....the list is endless.

Did you know the first person to be recorded as being filled with the Spirit in the Bible was
​Bezalel, a craftsman? [Exodus 35:30-33] Ask Him to fill you as you create, and see what happens.....

Short of inspiration?
A good starting place is to look on the internet, in magazines & library books to find evocative pictures of autumn, and then look at what other people are doing.
Pull it all together in a scrap book of seasonal stimuli. 
​I use 'Pinterest' on the web, to make a pin board of such pictures & craft ideas- not to share with others, particularly, but to give me ideas.

​ 

Try something new. You don't need to be a Shakespeare to write, or a Jamie Oliver to cook!
Just make whatever you do an offering to the Lord!

I'd love to hear from you - click on the 'Take Action' icon above to have your say.
Comments won't be made public without permission.​

In the beautiful weather we've been having, I have been enjoying the trees at the end of our road, resplendent in their autumn clothes.
​Funny I haven't noticed them in other years.......

.......Maybe they just haven't looked so good before?
.......Maybe it's because I've been approaching them from different direction this year?
.......Or maybe in the past I was just too busy or preoccupied to take notice?​

Whatever the reason, it made me think once again,
about taking time to be really present in our surroundings.
Our attention may be caught by the stunning mountain scene​, the blaze of colour in the park borders, or the majestic waves crashing on the beach - which is all good - but sometimes we fail to see the quiet glory under our noses.
I wonder how many blessings we miss because we go through life with our minds elsewhere?
And as each blessing is an opportunity to connect with the One 'who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment' [1Timothy 6:17],
I wonder how many divine appointments we miss as well?

​​

We have been enjoying some fabulous autumn sunshine. However in this part of the UK, it has been characterised by morning mist in the low-lying areas, lifting around lunch time to reveal the glorious sunshine the higher parts have been enjoying since dawn.

The sun was there all the time, it was just that the fog got in the way.

Sometimes we can feel like we are in a personal fog; it feels cold & cheerless, and the 'markers' for our lives feel indistinct. God seems distant, and His love withdrawn.
Sometimes there is something we can do to clear the fog: deal with sin, change our course, mend a broken relationship etc.

But other times it is not about anything we have done, anything we need to mend,
and in those times, we have to just hang on in there, stand believing,
trusting in our Father who shines His love on us with inordinate passion,
and the mist will clear.​

While I believe as Christians we are no longer bound by these commands, [Galatians 3],
this feast can have an amazing prophetic impact on us,
and give some thought-provoking colour to this Season of Fruitfulness.
I explored these ideas through a series of blogs last year:

Click on Tabernacles in the Categories Sidebar (at the right of this column)
to go to last year's blog entries.
Be sure to start at the beginning, at the entry for 5/10/2014,
and read from the bottom blog up, for it to make sense.

There are still some blackberries to be had - in the North of England at least. My freezer has this year's offerings waiting to be turned into bramble jelly, pies and puddings.

Blackberry picking always evokes happy memories of blackberrying as a child. It was an annual family event: we would go armed with a picnic,  a jam jar on string to hang round our necks, a big wicker basket to tip our finds into, and my father's walking stick to harness out-of-reach branches.            'How did you know I've been eating them?' we would ask with wide-eyed innocence!

There is something special about a hedgerow harvest: nature's offerings there for the taking. Blackberries, elderberries,  rowan berries, crab apples, sloes - they can all be made into delectable offerings, just for the price of a few additional ingredients, and some effort. And there's something very satisfying about blessing our families and friends with the work of our hands.

Of course disease, lack of water & light, and poor soil have an effect on the quality of fruit produced by a tree. We can’t produce fruit by our own efforts, but we can co-operate with the Holy Spirit to make good growing conditions.  

    For example by.....                                                                                           

• Aligning our thinking with God’s thinking, as revealed in His word.
  
  
• Spending time in the sunshine of His presence.
  
  
• Being continually filled with ‘living water’
  
  
• Spending time with people who nourish the life of God in us.
  
  

The trees are laden with seeds and berries. It reminds us that fruitfulness is written into the fabric of the universe – and also into us as children of God. I have never seen a tree groaning & straining to bear fruit – because it’s in its nature- an apple tree bears apples because of what it is.  So it is with us, the Holy Spirit in us bears fruit naturally - if we co-operate with Him.