{"id":7222,"date":"2019-11-04T10:12:31","date_gmt":"2019-11-04T16:12:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thedisciplemaker.org\/?p=7222"},"modified":"2019-11-04T10:12:31","modified_gmt":"2019-11-04T16:12:31","slug":"the-closing-of-autumn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/","title":{"rendered":"The Closing of Autumn"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>

The first-frost smells of slightly frozen autumn are transcendent. Last night\u2019s temperatures brought all but the heartiest of this year\u2019s bounty to an end; yet when the first rays of early morning sun warm this frozen world, the result is a feast for all my senses. The fresh chill in the air exhilarates me as I draw it deep into my lungs. A carpet of frozen leaves crunches beneath my feet, releasing the sweet fragrance of decay. It is magical, this first frost.
\nWelcome to the close of autumn.
\nI sit with him this morning, the creator of all this, breathing it in. We sit on my front porch, drinking tea, listening to the unmistakable sound of gentle wind rustling through dried leaves, breathing in their sweet, tangy smells. I share with him my thoughts on fall: the joys of cooler temperatures, the beauty of autumn, the celebration of harvest. But also, my dislike of endings, my struggle against the inevitable coming of cold, dark days. I confess my preference for all that is green and growing, hopeful and alive.
\nHe listens patiently, then reminds me of his side of the story. The creator of autumn is enthralled by the harvest of his handiwork. The blue-gray skies, raindrops that spontaneously appear in the air, the surplus of gourds, pumpkins, and burnt-orange mums. The warmth of sweaters, the comfort of sipping hot tea. The smell of decaying leaves\u2014which I myself just described as transcendent. The brilliant colors of life in this harvest season. The gratitude of abundance, of fulfillment, of enough.
\nIn nature, nothing is wasted. Fruits and vegetable may be harvested to provide life for another creature, but even if left to rot on the vine or in the field, they will fall and feed the soil, the worms and fungus recycling them back into the ground, readying them to spring forth into new life. Nothing is ever wasted or destroyed: only transformed.<\/strong>[i]<\/a>
\nIf this is the way God acts through creation, mightn\u2019t we expect him to work this way in our spirits as well? All our efforts, disappointments, victories, and failures\u2014in his Kingdom, nothing is wasted. He is taking it all, shaping it, forming us, steadfastly working toward his own harvest festival in a world made new. Our Gardener can cultivate gratitude in me, even\u2014perhaps especially\u2014in the seasons I try to push away. For it is when I need him most that I remember to seek him .\u00a0.\u00a0. and find him.
\nIs this why he exhorts us to rejoice \u201cin all circumstances\u201d?[ii]<\/a> We walk boldly toward the close, choosing gratitude, believing that God\u2019s ultimate harvest will be justice, wholeness, redemption, shalom.
\nI sit quietly, taking it all in\u2014the sights, smells, tastes, feelings, and sounds. I know he is making something new, even in this season of harvest, this close of autumn.
\nBecause he is always, always making things new.<\/p>\n

\n

You’ve been reading with Catherine McNeil from All Shall Be Well: Awakening to God’s Presence in this Messy, Abundant World<\/em>. Get a copy or read a free excerpt of chapter one here<\/a><\/strong>. Head over to allshallbewellbook.com<\/a><\/strong> to get to know Catherine and her writing on faith, motherhood, and many other beautifully messy topics.
\n\"\"<\/a>
\n[i]<\/a> Paraphrase of a translated Antoine Lavoisier quote found here: https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/quotes\/143287-dans-la-nature-rien-ne-se-cr-e-rien-ne-se.
\n[ii]<\/a> 1\u00a0Thessalonians 5:16-18.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The first-frost smells of slightly frozen autumn are transcendent. Last night\u2019s temperatures brought all but the heartiest of this year\u2019s bounty to an end; yet when the first rays of early morning sun warm this frozen world, the result is … <\/p>\n

Read moreThe Closing of Autumn<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":7223,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","_FSMCFIC_featured_image_caption":"","_FSMCFIC_featured_image_nocaption":"","_FSMCFIC_featured_image_hide":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[39,58,196,370],"yoast_head":"\nThe Closing of Autumn - The Disciplemaker<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Closing of Autumn - The Disciplemaker\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The first-frost smells of slightly frozen autumn are transcendent. Last night\u2019s temperatures brought all but the heartiest of this year\u2019s bounty to an end; yet when the first rays of early morning sun warm this frozen world, the result is ... Read moreThe Closing of Autumn\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Disciplemaker\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-11-04T16:12:31+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/11\/leaves-and-snow.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"The Disciplemaker Team\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"The Disciplemaker Team\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"The Disciplemaker Team\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#\/schema\/person\/336a0124246a4b32dfcd97632e442fd5\"},\"headline\":\"The Closing of Autumn\",\"datePublished\":\"2019-11-04T16:12:31+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2019-11-04T16:12:31+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/\"},\"wordCount\":567,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"all shall be well\",\"autumn\",\"fall\",\"nature\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Know\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/\",\"name\":\"The Closing of Autumn - The Disciplemaker\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2019-11-04T16:12:31+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2019-11-04T16:12:31+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The Closing of Autumn\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/\",\"name\":\"The Disciplemaker\",\"description\":\"Bold. Loving. Sensible.\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#organization\",\"name\":\"NavPress\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2023\/06\/cropped-The-Disciplemaker.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2023\/06\/cropped-The-Disciplemaker.png\",\"width\":4092,\"height\":818,\"caption\":\"NavPress\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#\/schema\/person\/336a0124246a4b32dfcd97632e442fd5\",\"name\":\"The Disciplemaker Team\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/13f656eb42ae7a3178247402a948adef?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/13f656eb42ae7a3178247402a948adef?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"The Disciplemaker Team\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/author\/dgeeslin\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Closing of Autumn - The Disciplemaker","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Closing of Autumn - The Disciplemaker","og_description":"The first-frost smells of slightly frozen autumn are transcendent. Last night\u2019s temperatures brought all but the heartiest of this year\u2019s bounty to an end; yet when the first rays of early morning sun warm this frozen world, the result is ... Read moreThe Closing of Autumn","og_url":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/","og_site_name":"The Disciplemaker","article_published_time":"2019-11-04T16:12:31+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":800,"url":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/11\/leaves-and-snow.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"The Disciplemaker Team","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"The Disciplemaker Team","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/"},"author":{"name":"The Disciplemaker Team","@id":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#\/schema\/person\/336a0124246a4b32dfcd97632e442fd5"},"headline":"The Closing of Autumn","datePublished":"2019-11-04T16:12:31+00:00","dateModified":"2019-11-04T16:12:31+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/"},"wordCount":567,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#organization"},"keywords":["all shall be well","autumn","fall","nature"],"articleSection":["Know"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/","url":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/","name":"The Closing of Autumn - The Disciplemaker","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#website"},"datePublished":"2019-11-04T16:12:31+00:00","dateModified":"2019-11-04T16:12:31+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/2019\/11\/the-closing-of-autumn\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The Closing of Autumn"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/","name":"The Disciplemaker","description":"Bold. Loving. Sensible.","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#organization","name":"NavPress","url":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2023\/06\/cropped-The-Disciplemaker.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2023\/06\/cropped-The-Disciplemaker.png","width":4092,"height":818,"caption":"NavPress"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#\/schema\/person\/336a0124246a4b32dfcd97632e442fd5","name":"The Disciplemaker Team","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/13f656eb42ae7a3178247402a948adef?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/13f656eb42ae7a3178247402a948adef?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"The Disciplemaker Team"},"url":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/author\/dgeeslin\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7222"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7222"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7222\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7223"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7222"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7222"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/sites\/thedisciplemaker\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7222"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}