I can never forget a revelation that hit me one autumn afternoon when I was rummaging through my grandma and grandpa's old barn.  This building was a world of its own during my childhood.  It was here where the cows were milked, mice got stuck in the feed barrels, an occasional black snake would be found nestled in the rafters, and the sweet smell of hay always made me happy!  It was a busy and necessary barn - the center of all outdoor things that sheltered and sustained family life. 

Now all that is left is a structure with a leaky, but mostly in-tack roof covering it's aging and warped timbers.  Sun beams flow through the cracks and crevices of walls that are bending and giving in to the elements.  

There is a lively history filled with stories and life happenings, good, bad and unique.  The pieces of an old sorghum molasses set-up lean against one wall, sporting memories of hot pancakes and sweet, warm syrup on fall mornings.  Bits of halters and bridles hang on hooks on another wall.  Built-in feed and water troughs still sit empty after years of use.  In one corner there are empty burlap feed bags, folded and neatly stacked.

I stood and gazed at the now almost open-ended wall.  There just beyond its shadow were sun-lit oranges, yellows and greens...signs of beauty inviting my eye beyond the past.  

It was a picture of life's past treasures - but also an invitation to its continuing joys.  We each have "structures" that have had years of joy - and years of struggle.  Sometimes heartache is all we can see while standing inside our deteriorating walls.  

However, we have a God who has much more waiting if we will but look up and see the colorful hope beyond our past or pain.  Sometimes even our pleasant past is clouded with the pain of it no longer being our present.  

I believe our Father beckons us to embrace what is next in our lives...especially the "hope set before us" in things that are eternal.  

The precious memories are comforting as we begin to take His hand and move forward into the colorful tomorrows He has for us.  Eventually, for all who will accept, it will lead us to one that will last forever if we will but endure and trust in His sure promises.