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There is a story I like about a man who decided that summer was the only time he could truly tackle his home maintenance projects. He bought a ladder that claimed to be “all-terrain,” a pressure washer strong enough to strip paint off a battleship, and a pair of neon orange safety goggles that made him look like a wayward space explorer. By the second of July, he was stuck on his roof, the pressure washer had developed a mind of its own and was watering the neighbor’s cat, and he had permanently glued his left shoe to his patio deck. He called a Pastor friend, defeated, covered in caulk and exhaustion, and asked, “Pastor, why does ‘restful’ summer always turn into ‘chaotic’ summer so quickly?”
They laughed about it, but then as I read that story it got me thinking. How often do we approach our spiritual lives with the same frantic, “all-terrain” energy? We treat summer like a project to be completed—a checklist of vacations, yard work, and social obligations—rather than a season intended for God’s grace to breathe into us.
Summer is often heralded as a time of slowing down, yet we are rarely good at it. We fill our calendars with “fun” until we feel just as depleted as we did in the middle of a busy winter. But what if we engaged in a “holy pause”?
This isn’t a suggestion to be lazy; it is a profound command to pivot our focus. When the days grow longer and the sun sits higher in the sky, we have a unique opportunity to stop the noise and reconnect with the Source of our faith.
We are invited to “Be still, and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10. The Bible reminds us of the value of intentional stillness. Faith isn’t a project to be maintained, like our friend’s rooftop ambitions in the story. Faith is a garden to be tended. Just as plants need the heat of the summer to push toward maturity, our spirits need these warmer, slower months to grow deeper roots. Yet some how being in the community we call the church seems to be one of the first things we set aside in the summer.
This season offers us a chance to re-center our lives around the character of Christ. Perhaps for you, spiritual growth this summer looks like waking up fifteen minutes earlier to sit on the porch with your Bible and devotions. Maybe it looks like being more present with your family, or using your vacation time as a pilgrimage of gratitude rather than an escape from your life. Summer reminds us that although seasons change, the faithfulness of God remains constant. As the landscape shifts and blooms, remember that your faith, too, is designed to flourish.
As we move into these next few months, I encourage you: leave the pressure washer in the shed. Take a deep breath. Let your faith find its rhythm in the sunshine and the stillness. May you find, in the middle of your summer, the gentle presence of the One who holds every season—and every one of us—in His hands.
In Christ,
Pastor Laurie
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