Yay- the best season is here! Ok, so yeah, I am biased but autumn is pretty cool- boots, jackets, hats, scarves, #PSL (Pumpkin Spice Lattes), and apple orchard picking! It’s a new season of new things for many people. For many Syrian and Iraqi people it’s a new season to be in a new country trying to start over with life as a refugee. For many of the Jewish faith it’s a New Year and a time for the atonement of sins. For many students it’s the start of a new academic calendar. It’s the start of a new UN General Assembly. For the U.S. it’s almost the end of Q4 of the fiscal year. Lots of new things.

~~

I’ve been thinking a lot about people recently; and since it’s people that makes the world go round- not really, it’s God, but it’s we people that choose to make a peaceful world- I think it’s altogether fitting to realize how people impact seasons. And it’s also fitting for us to do a little self-introspection to let go of the past- if it is holding us back, so that we can lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of us in this autumn season.

I remember in my Diplomacy & Negotiation class in Post grad, my professor said “it’s never a situation that’s complicated. It’s people that complicate situations.” And a fellow American stated to me this summer: “It’s not guns that shoot people, it’s people that shoot people.”

We can only be in charge of our hearts, our actions, our reactions, and ourselves. So, I think that in order to have an awesome autumn season, we must self introspect and decide what kind of person we want to be in this world. We must go before God and ask Him to help us in our weaknesses so that we can be better to those around us. I can’t control how someone will act in a situation but I can resolve now, and strive to react like Christ in whatever situation(s) I will be hit with this autumn.

The Bible tells us that we’re made in His image, both male and female (Genesis 1:27). Which means we can be loving, joyful, peaceful, patient, exhibit kindness, execute goodness, be faithful, exercisegentleness and be self-controlled- all of the character traits of our Creator.

But, because there is sin in the world, we are capable of all the awful things we loathe about people- murder, hate, racism, sexism, misunderstanding, impatience, meanness, unfaithfulness, unkindness, harshness, persecution, and lack of self-control- all of the character traits of the devil himself.

We’re complicated beings. We’re like onions, as my cousin likes to say. We’ve got many layers and sub-layers to us. We often can’t understand our own selves sometimes. And if we’re living under any moral rules, we’re fighting flesh (sin) with faith. This world is broken because of sin, we are broken because of sin, but we’re all caught in God’s amazing grace. And while things are broken, it’s not all doom and gloom- God's got a plan and purpose for all this brokenness.

As this season is just beginning, I’m reminded of the fact that my identity is in Christ, not in man. Because we-people- are imperfect we cannot unleash levels of expectation on ourselves and on others that can only be meant for God, who is perfect. If we do we will be disappointed. I think it’s easy for Christians to understand with our minds that our identities are in Christ, but we fail to get understand that with our hearts. And if we fail to do this with our hearts, we forget the importance of lavishing grace, mercy, and forgiveness on our fellow man.

We’ve all been hurt by people, have hurt people, misunderstood  people and have been misunderstood by people. Some have even been mentally, emotionally, or physically scarred by people. For those with extreme scars it takes time and counseling to receive healing and freedom. But, our lives as humans will NEVER make sense until will choose to surrender our hearts, our lives, our pains, our struggles, and our disappointments to Christ.

This autumn season will bring many awesome moments and it will bring disappointments. People will let us down and we too in some way will let others down.

It's only in Christ where we find the ability to be merciful and forgiving to others.

It is only in Him that we find security, stability, the Fruits of the Spirit, and wholeness that no man can give.

If we can remember that our identities are in Christ, we can have hope and we can have joy! We don’t have to be broken by what others may do to us, we don’t have to be broken by a broken world.

Happy Friday & Happy Autumn xx!

-Berlin!