“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
his mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22-23
Labor Day in my backyard was glorious! Sunny, blue skies with a few fluffy white clouds to punctuate the vista, hot enough to swim, cool enough to sit on the porch comfortably. The perfect segue between summer, my niece’s favorite season, and autumn, my favorite season.
If every day dawned like Labor Day, my desire for seasonal change might diminish. My memories of Hurricanes Hugo and Helene remind me that change can be desirable when moving from stormy seasons to pleasant ones. I truly love seasonal change. The barrenness of winter helps me appreciate the tender green shoots of spring. The glaring summer sun warms then burns me into longing for the yellows and rust colors of autumn. Everything changes at some point.
Or does it? God our Creator and Sustainer built our world to change around us, but guarantees us His immovable, immutable presence. The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. His mercies never come to an end. He is to be relied upon, trusted, a strong tower, a rock to cling to. In your darkest nights and toughest storms He is with you. You never need to be alone.
God loves you. You might need that reminder today, if your season seems stormy. Here in the south we are entering the height of hurricane season. At the coast frequent ads for storm preparations can be seen. Keep bottled water on hand, extra medication, canned goods, etc…, think ahead and be ready just in case you find yourself in the path of a hurricane.
It should be the same way with those of us who believe in God and His steadfast love. We should be preparing daily for the inevitable storm. We should drink freely from the river of life, knowing His promises and words so that when the flow of good water gets cut off we have a deep supply to draw from. We should know our healer well enough to see how He is keeping us and tending us for His glory. We should be feasting on the Word of God in advance to be strong enough to endure a few days or weeks of famine. Spiritual storm preparation for whatever season you find yourself in, keeping you firmly grounded in the God who never changes.
As you move through the fall, I hope you see the steadfast love of God in every colorful and falling leaf. New leaves will appear in the spring, the mercies of God are new every morning, great is His faithfulness.
There are certain cookies that I usually make for holidays or at specific seasons. Molasses Crinkles defy seasonality, they are just delicious all the time. They also make up quite quickly; and can be eaten just as fast.
Molasses Crinkles
- 3/4 cup soft butter
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup molasses
- 2 1/4 cups Gold Medal Flour
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cloves
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp ginger
Mix butter and sugar well, add egg and molasses. Add dry ingredients and mix well. I used the mixer this time, but you can totally stir this by hand. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for about an hour. You can speed chill the dough in the freezer if you need to! Takes about 20 minutes. Do not leave it in for too long.
Roll dough into balls the size of walnuts. Roll balls in granulated sugar and place on greased baking sheet. Bake for 5-7 minutes at 375*. Cookies should set but not harden or they will be more like old-fashioned ginger snaps.
I made the mistake of not doubling the recipe and found myself making these cookies on back to back days to satisfy demand!