I asked my granddaughter, Abby, about a plant on the stairway leading to their deck. 5th grader Abby is a gardener at heart, so she led me to some other potted plants on the steps. She was dismayed because the marigolds and petunias weren’t looking too good. I told her that they were annuals and summer is ending so they have run their course. But come next spring they may reappear, especially the petunias.
On September 14, the church celebrates Holy Cross Day. It commemorates the dedication of a church built by Emperor Constantine in the early 4th century at the site at which it was said, the true cross of Christ was found.
Holy Cross Day reinvigorates our faith in Christ’s victory over sin and death. The time until Advent looks forward to Christ’s victorious return and our resurrection. From All Saints Day, the Sunday lessons lead us to look at the ends times, culminating with Christ the King Sunday.
Our gardens are coming to the end of their season. One day frost will leave my tomato plants and elephant ears limp and lifeless. Yet some tomato seeds sprout next spring. I will dig my elephant ears roots and replant them when the sun is warm again. Geese will soon be honking high in the sky winging their V shapes south.
In Christ we have our own V, victory over the grave. One day we will sprout forth when the Son returns. Fall is not only a time of dying, but a looking forward in faith to resurrection and new life. Then Abby and I go will back to the garden and try to create a little of paradise in anticipation of the final Paradise.
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