Autumn wardrobe
Autumn has arrived, it’s my favourite season! Have you noticed the leaves on the trees are turning those gorgeous yellows, oranges and reds?
On the path I walk along to get to the church premises there is a large horse chestnut tree which has dropped all its conkers. I love these glossy smooth bright giant seeds – to me they are the very essence of autumn.
We’ve had wet and windy weather for the last few days, and more noticeably the temperature has dropped! I confess, that the other night we even popped the heating on for a few hours.
I’ve put my shorts and tee-shirts away and exchanged them for long sleeve tops, jumpers and fleeces. This seasonal transition is marked by a change in what we wear.
Whilst wrapped in a warm jumper I read this bit in one of the New Testament letters in the Bible...
“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.”
Here, the author Paul was saying how people changed when they became Christians. He likened it to taking off old garments and putting on new ones.
In this autumn season, as I was changing what I wear, I was struck by the ‘wardrobe’ Paul wrote about and wondered how well I put on: compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience?
If I ‘wear’ these, then I believe I’m going to be more of the kind of person God wants me to be. So let me encourage you, each day as you get dressed, to think, or even pray that God will ‘dress’ you in His ‘spiritual wardrobe’...
God bless
Gary Bastin - Hope Community Church leader