Well, we made it. Another church year come and gone and we are exhausted – wonderfully exhausted and filled with gratitude. For some, our kids have made it through another year, some even graduated into new adventures. Some of us have made major life transitions through events and health issues for ourselves and those we love. Others of us have had their work lives give layoffs, promotions, or changes that have challenged our work/life balance. Still others of us try to hold our families as one while the world seems more violent whirlwind than a gentle refreshing breeze of God’s promise and presence.
And as our summertime schedule approaches, after June 16, our church begins to slow down. No more fund-raisers or suppers. No church school. No choir. Abbreviated worship of 30-40 minutes. It’s a time of respite, recovery, and finding our new passion and mission direction for the coming year starting at about the same time the kids return to school. And it’s a time where we can take direction from our Youth Group, who worked so hard to go on a mission trip to Rhode Island, and find out what it really means to serve the brokenhearted, the disinherited, and the poor. They will see the real-world part of Jesus’ commands in Matthew 25: “When I was hungry did you feed me? When I was naked did you clothe me?…”
So I’d like to invite you to relax this summer. Clear your mind of what needs to be done, the clutter of our thinking that leaves us frazzled and frayed. Leave space for God’s voice and Spirit to descend upon your heart and hear what was intended for you – your life – your mission in serving God’s requirements of all of us in Micah 6:8 – “To do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with YOUR God.” Or maybe Luke 12:48b – “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be required.” What are God’s blessings in you and in your life? What shall we do with them? Come on in, and let’s talk about it.
Have a good summer.
Pastor Mark
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