"Autumn"

I love the winding roads we go,

The leaves of gold in fall,

I love the sound of bobwhite quail,

When from the fields they call.

The mother cows with bawling calves,

The horses running free,

The sights and sounds of yesterday,

They mean so much to me.

The smell of smoke from roaring flame,

The wood stacked by the hearth,

And steaming plates of country food,

With corn bread not too far.

And football games and mornings cool,

And lots of shotgun shells,

And times of holy worship,

And ringing time-worn bells.

And most of all I praise the Lord,

For autumn’s blessings strong,

The feel of home and harvest,

And by grace we belong,

To those who make thanksgiving,

A way of life you see,

To praise the Lord in everything,

And always it should be.

“Therefore, let us offer through Jesus a continual sacrifice of praise to God…” (Hebrews 13:15, NLT)

Followers of Jesus are distinctively praisers. This means we have taken the focus off ourselves and put it where it belongs, on Jesus! The sacrifice or praise means simply we sacrifice giving our egos attention and credit, and instead give the Lord the praises due His name. We will do this forever. But this life is heaven rehearsal, and we learn to continually and habitually live thankfully. It also happens to be the happiest of all possible ways to live. Praise on.

Lord, help us continually praise You, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Robert “Shoofly” Shufelt, used by permission. Thanks, Robert, and God bless you.