And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years ..." Genesis 1:14.

It's late autumn. The days are short and nights are long. The harvest season is just about complete.  Lots to do and limited time to get it all done. Thank God for our farmers.

The nights are getting colder and the sun does not heat things up as it did during the growing season. Soon we will be hunkered down in the winter cold while planning and waiting for another spring. 

We can already see the "snowbirds" are heading south to a warmer climate and the snow lovers are already hitting the ski slopes. 

The other day I decided that it was time to rake the lawn before the snow flies. I've always heard that if there are a lot of acorns we are in for a hard winter season. Well, the yard was like walking on marbles. I guess I will know the results come spring.  

This got me thinking — our awesome God knows all about the changing of seasons. He created them. The original light source was replaced by the sun and moon to distinguish day and night, and to mark off seasons. 

We all experience seasons of change in our lives. This year has been especially hard for me with a brother and so many others close to me passing on to glory. 

The changing seasons cause us to pause and recognize that, while commonplace, each one brings new challenges and opportunities. As we look forward to a new year, we must place our hopes and dreams in the form of prayers to the Lord. 

Hope thou in God! Jesus said, "I am the light of the world.

"God is light; in him there is no darkness at all." 

The year 2020 is a new beginning, a new decade, full of moments to self-evaluate and to make an impact in your world for Jesus. Time is a precious gift from God. He has given us light to govern day and night, and to separate light and darkness. 

Even greater, he has given us Jesus to help us through the seasons of life. 

Ask yourself today, how can I reflect the light of Jesus in 2020? 

Doug Smith
Millville, Pa.

Smith is secretary of the northeast Pennsylvania chapter of Fellowship of Christian Farmers International.