From one pumpkin to another

The little kids will be out in numbers again this weekend. All dressed in their wigs, masks and costumes. Trick or treating has been a tradition for years. Our community has gotten kind of away from the door to door trick or treating and alot of kids go to local churches for harvest fests instead. Our church hosts a large community outreach during this time of year offering a safe and spiritual alternative. I am thankful to see good things come from an otherwise evil-intended celebration.

You can always tell it is getting close to harvest time when people start putting out pumpkins in their front yards. Our neighborhood is full of them. I have many fond memories of taking my children when they were young to the pumpkin patch to pick out their very own pumpkin. It was always fun to see the different kinds of pumpkins each one of them would pick. One would pick the largest one they could find, while another picked the smallest. I always liked to find a pumpkin that had indention's or markings in it that resembled a face. Whatever we ended up with, one thing was proven ... no two pumpkins were the same.

I think that being a Christian is much like a pumpkin in that pumpkin patch.

Just as we went to pick out a special pumpkin - God also reaches down and picks us up, brushes off the dirt and sees something very special about us. He then opens us up and reaches in and scoops out all the nasty stuff that lies inside. Stuff like doubt, fear, sin.

Once we are cleaned up inside, God then gives us a new look on the outside, a smile that is contagious for all to see it.

1 SAMUEL 16:7 "...for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart."

No matter how many bumps we have, God has the power to smooth them over and He always sees the beauty inside even before all the seeds and junk are removed. No pumpkin is complete without a light to reflect the new creation. So to finish His touch on His pumpkin patch, God places a light inside of us that shines on and on for all who passes by to see.

So from one pumpkin to another, may we all just keep our light burning brightly for all to see!

Have a safe weekend!