Faith Words: Pumpkin Patch

I know, I know.  It's still September and yesterday, the temperature reached 108^o!   But when I went to the grocery store today and saw those orange harbingers of fall, I just couldn't help myself.  I bought three pumpkins.  

And not just any pumpkins.  Nope, I bought three Warty Goblin pumpkins!  They're orange with green and orange warts all over them like something out of a Harry Potter movie.  I might have been able to pass them by but my three had the cutest curled stems.  Like I said - I just couldn't help myself.  I fell in love with them immediately - warts and all.  In fact, I think it's because they have those goofy warts that I love them.  They make me smile.

What do you look for in a pumpkin?  Do you select yours for its color, its shape, its stem?  Do you imagine what it will look like when it's carved into a spooky Jack-O-Lantern lighting up your front porch?  Or how pretty it will look in your fall centerpiece all nestled in a basket with fall leaves, gourds, and candles, with festive ribbon tied to its stem?

What does God look for in you, in me?  Does He see how courageously we'll stand, firmly secured in His Word, lighting the way for others to follow?  Does He choose us to be an integral part of a team of other Christians working together to welcome and encourage?  

I know this:  when He looks at you - when He looks at me - He sees past the color, past the shape, all the way to the heart.  He sees what He created you and me to be.

God created each us to be uniquely who we are.  He puts us in just the right spot to be the very best we can be, so we can do exactly what He created us to do.   And then, He stands back and smiles. 

He loves us - warts and all.

Happy Fall!

Patrice

1 Samuel 16:7b NIV

The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.