Is it literally August 8th? I do not know where this summer went. I look at the lake as I pass it by on my numerous trips into town and feel I have not fully grabbed hold of this pleasure at my fingertips. I feel a sudden urgency to soak in the sun and feel the lake breeze these next couple weeks and….well, what am I doing! (pack up computer, get beach chair, get in car, drive up to lake)
So here I am now, sitting in the sun on the grass in front of the lake as I write. The sun is warm and the clank of the flags on the metal poles as they whip in the wind pairs well with the caw of a seagull. Making the most of the time, the most of the summer, always seems to eat at us when August hits us here in the upper Mid-West. There is this sense we are missing out on the one thing we are given to enjoy. Summer.
Though, the reality of my summer, even without the sun, the lake, or the vacation that seems to always elude us, has been amazing in different ways. I spent two weeks in Zambia in June and saw God move in mighty ways. The lives of girls and women were touched with truth and love and men came to Christ. New ideas and visions were given to us for future projects and ministry. Getting red Zambian dirt blown in my face was absolutely perfect.
Even coming back to the busy July calendar at camp was exciting as we battled for the kids coming to camp and for the dear, sweet college staff we are over. It was tiring and thrilling all at the same time. Staying up late to pray or to talk to someone does not bode well for my sleep schedule, but this is the joy of kingdom work. It is the joy of being a part of things that last for eternity. Because there is something more important during this season. Something more urgent than the fleeting summer sun. The work of the kingdom. Let us not become so infatuated with the sun, the waves and the excess of this life that we ignore the plight of the poor, the oppressed, and the lost.
Seasons come and go and we continually regret the past one and try to envision the next to be what the past one was not. Let us not miss out on the season that is before us, an urgent season of doing the work of the Father. Doing things that matter forever. And along the way, whether it be the dust or dirt of a foreign country or the breeze of Lake Geneva, let us not miss out on the joy of doing the work of God. Because soon, this season will be…Gone too fast…
Revelation 22:12-13, “Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”
