Maybe you’ve noticed the influx of #TBT posts on your Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. The three letters simply mean Throwback Thursday. Most of the time, the hashtag is accompanied by a picture from wayyy back in the day or of a very special, not-so-distant-past day. Today, I’ll spare you the  photos of bowl cut Emily, and simply tell you about the Emily from wayyy back in the day.

Young Emily (10ish) hated the fall. I know, I know, who hates fall? Oh, but Emily did. She hated that her birthday was in November, because it had the ugliest birthstone of all! AND, on top of that, she couldn’t have fun outdoor birthday parties like her sisters (born in June and July) or the majority of her friends. Instead, she had cold, often rainy, rarely enjoyable birthdays because she was born in the fall. BAH HUMBUG to the FALL!

Now, though, I love the fall! Yellow has become one of my most favorite colors, and so I adore my birthstone. I LOVE having a birthday in the fall because I get to enjoy wearing pea coats and scarves (two of my favorite things!). I LOVE the fall because it’s not overwhelmingly hot, and it’s not freeze-to-death cold either. It’s a wonderful, beautiful time of year, and I am blessed to have a birthday right smack dab in the middle of it. My my how things change!

But why did they change? Why did I used to hate fall but now I love it? Is it because I grew to love pea coats? Is it because scarves weren’t trendy when I was 10? I think it’s vastly different from those two things: I think it’s because 10 year old Emily was looking at self, and 26 (tomorrow) Emily is looking at God.

As a selfish ten year old, I hated the fall because it wasn’t convenient for me. It didn’t give me exactly what I wanted, and so I didn’t enjoy it. Now, some 16 years later, I enjoy the fall not because I’m selfish, but because my eyes are opened to the God of heaven and all that He is doing in the fall.

I know that God is working all the time. I know that there isn’t a day that passes where He isn’t concerned about us or seeing us or hearing us or knowing us. But I also know that in the fall, it’s easier to see God’s presence. When the leaves change, it’s easier to see a loving God who provides such good gifts for His children (Matt.7:11, James 1:17). When the squirrels busily gather nuts, it’s easier to see an all-knowing God who feeds them and provides for them, and, subsequently, provides for me, too (Matt.6:25-34). When the orange moon peaks its head over the bare trees, it’s easier to see a God whose creation boasts His magnificence (Psalm 19:1). I love the fall, because it shows me a beautiful picture of the Creator of the world, and lifts my spirit just knowing He is mindful of such a small, sinful creature like me.

I’m sad that younger Emily didn’t have her eyes opened to the wonderful, majestic, marvelous Creator, but I am thankful that He gave her time to grow…and to open her eyes.