Fall is here and manifesting all the beauty of transition. Flowers change from their glorious colors of summer and work instead at the job of spreading seeds out into the world. Leaves change from supple green light collectors into crunchy brown someday-soil scattered on the ground. I love fall. The cool temperatures and brisk breezes are a relief after the heat of July. Fall also holds a tinge of melancholy in the change it so clearly displays. Change that will lead us into winter.
Change can be good and beautiful and, at the same time, bring lament over all that we are leaving behind. Fall, with all its transition and hints at the coming season of winter, offers us an open door to recognize the sorrow that is also present amid the beauty. Over the next four weeks we will be engaging the topic of lament through stories and passages from scripture, and offering some practices to help us along the way.
Each week we will share a Comfort (a reflection on a story or passage from the Bible) on Monday and a Joy (an activity or mindset to try out during the week) on Thursday. We hope you will join us on the journey!
We hope that this has brought you some comfort and joy. If this has been meaningful for you please like, comment or share this with others.
And in case you missed it, we wrote a book! Comfort and Joy: Readings and Practices for Advent may be a wonderful companion for you this holiday season. If you are looking for something new, Unhappy Holidays: Blessings for a Blue Christmas is a newly released Advent devotional written by Sherah-Leigh as a gentle guide for those dreading the coming weeks.
some comfort and joy 