by Meredith Neufeld
Summer. One simple word that stirs up long held experiences, memories, and feelings. Leisurely days and warm nights outside. Grilling and catching lightning bugs. Jumping off diving boards into a crystal clear pool. Family reunions, beach trips, and bike rides. It’s the season for fireworks, late nights, and decadent desserts on the deck as stars come out.
Yet in all the sweetness of summer, the lightened schedule and slower pace – we still live as God’s people. We work at communication and connection in our marriages and relationships. We pursue our jobs, care for our homes, serve in our church, and parent as moms and dads. We make dinner, mow the lawn, do laundry, and walk our dogs. And it’s in the summering moments we ask: Lord, how do I worship you, here? In our home with wet towels, dripping popsicles, and long days with sticky kids? In miles of traveled roads to long-distance relatives, and all the unexpected that summer might bring us?
And in that place of tension; of releasing plans, even disappointment – how do we respond?
We lean in. We ask for God’s help. We wait in expectation for God to meet us as we are, and surrender ourselves to Him in the moment.
Maybe what we expect or hope from summer will be different from what God wants to give us, but we can trust that God is good. Summer is intense, but Jesus carries us as we invite Him into our daily moments. Remembering these 3 T’s helps me:
Time out // Where in my day can I take a moment to breathe? To take a few minutes to create space for quiet and stillness, to appreciate beauty, to allow my senses to engage? It could be as simple as letting my hands feel the water running over them, walking barefoot on the grass, or inhaling the scent of freshly baking cookies. Finding this space helps me realign my heart to God, wake me up again to His kindness, and refresh me.
Time in // It’s also a season to try new things, to deviate from normal routines. Maybe it’s time to dig deep, and turn over the soil of our lives. Maybe one of my children needs extra care from me – how can I be present for him? Or is there a new recipe to try, a fresh idea to pursue, or a neighbor to invite over? How can I be engaged this summer to welcome vitality into my life? We may be surprised to see what’s waiting within our reach, and how Jesus wants to meet us abundantly in these never-been-before places.
Treasure // We worship the Lord in our homes as we worship Him in our hearts. Is my heart yielded to Him today? Have I remembered again, that I am a sinner saved by grace?
Is my heart willing to accept (with God’s help) and joyfully carry out the tasks before me? Not to be falsely cheerful, but to actually live out 1 Corinthians 10:31, “So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” As children of God, we have this beautiful opportunity to display patience in the midst of chaos, tenderness in the middle of frustration, and peace in the wildness of our days, because Christ is in us.
We worship the Lord as we pray, and cry out to Him throughout our day. Short, real, prayers that acknowledge our need for help, wisdom, hope, and joy in the midst of the mundane. Johann von Goethe says- “Cease endlessly striving for what you would like to do and learn to love what must be done.”
We worship in our work.
Learning to love the work that must be done requires the strength of the Lord in us. Maybe we can begin to honor the Lord by responding to spills, sticky floors, and visits from guests with a heart surrendered. We share the gentleness of Jesus as we answer in kindness, instead of reacting in frustration. This lifelong growth process is a journey – but one that matters so deeply to the Lord that He won’t give up on us or let go of us. He will meet us in our weakness, and He promises to lead, guide, carry, lift up, and be with us every step of the way.
We worship in our wonder.
God longs to fill our souls with His glory, and our hearts with praise. This summer, where can we be in awe of God’s goodness, majesty, and beauty? It depends on how we see. Maybe we’ll find wonder in the dew drops on the tips of blades in the early morning, the crash of ocean waves pounding on the beach, or the joy bubbling out from a baby’s smile. Maybe we’ll find wonder in the phone call from an old friend, the way your husband quietly serves his family, or watching the first star come out at dusk. Wonder causes us to thank God and worship Him.
We worship in our waiting.
Maybe this season, things won’t go as planned. Our hearts may break. We won’t understand, but as we invite God into our everyday moments, we trust Him in each long, quiet, crazy, hilarious, wild, messy, beautiful day and we proclaim: Christ is with me. Christ loves me. I am His.
Matthew 11:28-30 says, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
May we be the people who come to Jesus as we are – weary and burdened – but are tenderly lifted into the light, and press on with hope because of the kindness and gentleness of Jesus.