Don’t you love fall? The colorful leaves and crisp, invigorating air are so uplifting. The sunlight highlights the brilliant colors of red and gold that fill the trees and carpet the ground. It is interesting to me that these leaves spend most of their life as lush green foliage, but in the fall they display their true colors. It is like they are saying to the world, that chlorophyll produced green was nice, but this is the REAL me.

Nevertheless, the reality is, in the midst of all this beauty, everything is dying. How can it be so picturesque? Why do we feel so alive? Could it be that God is showing us that death is a beginning and not an end? That death is truly beautiful.

As I contemplate this reality I am reminded of the grace and beauty of Mom’s last days. Just as I know that each falling leaf takes us closer to the long cold winter ahead, each labored breath took my mother closer to death.

My thoughts wander back to that day in June when my son and I watched life depart from my mother’s body. We listened intently to everything she said. As death drew closer, her real colors showed through too. Her thoughts were not of this world, but on spiritual matters, and it forced our thoughts to drift from the mundane and focus on the divine. As she prepared to meet her Maker, it was evident what was important.

She reclined in her favorite chair. Her eyes were closed as she pleaded for assurance that a person in her life knew she forgave him. After being reassured, she told us she was going to Jesus and that it was a joyous place. Mom was always afraid to travel, but this day, she was delighted to take a trip.

When I told her to go and that we would catch her later, she smiled (still too weak to open her eyes) and said, “I know you will, and I will be waiting for you.” Typical of my mother, her last words offered comfort and one final life lesson: don’t fear death. Instead, prepare for a beautiful place and joyful reunion.

Earthly life begins at birth, and God provides our needs to sustain our existence. As the autumn of our lives approach, our bodies begin to shut down. Death returns us to our Creator in the present (intermediate) Heaven. Although this is a wonderful place, it is temporary.

Just like the leaf, our journey begins and ends in the same place – earth. Unlike the leaf, the place where we spend eternity is a restored earth, a beautiful, perfect place, where every believer will experience what was originally intended before the fall of man.

Of course, not everyone’s death is peaceful. Prolonged and painful dying experiences are a reality. When we lose a loved one or walk beside a person struggling during their dying days, months, even years, it is easy to see death as dark and scary; but it is not. While dying can be a difficult time, death is beautiful for believers. It is a release. After all, it ushers us into a perfect life with Jesus.

…“and the day of death better than the day of birth” (Ecclesiastes 7:1b NIV).  Solomon was right. Our first birth brings us into a fallen world, but death leads to a perfect world with no pain or sorrow.

So, let the beauty of fall remind us of Paul’s message to the Corinthians:  O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting” (1 Corinthians 15:55  NLT)?

As always comments are welcome. I know they don’t show up right away, but if you return you should see the post within twenty-four hours.

Don’t forget the devotions this week. The women’s Word of the Week is “Courage” and the kids are studying the first part of Exodus with an emphasis on learning the meaning of Passover. The toddler devotional focuses on miracles.

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My next blog post is a bit of surprise. Make sure you visit again next week.

Blessings.