Summer

No Internet access for six weeks.

No Internet access for six weeks!

No, that’s not a cry of horror. That is a cry of delirious joy. This summer, I will be totally off the ‘net and away from all electronics (except my cell phone) and out in the cool pines. This is an occasion to forget about makeup, emails (hooray for snail mail!), Youtube (sorry Jordan-from-MessyMondays), and movies. It is also and occasion to

READ.

    My reading list currently consists of six of John Steinbeck’s novels that I’ve not yet read, the rest of Kisses from Katie, Culture Making, and Tom Sawyer in Spanish (we’ll see how much of it I can actually understand). I will, however, be adding a few new books to my list, since I have decided to take up the

Louisa May Alcott Reading Challenge!

Just in case you want to join the challenge :)

     I want to read two that I’ve never read before: Jo's Boys and How They Turned Out and Flower Fables

    

     Another thing that I am going to read a lot of this summer is my Bible. Working 40 hours a week without school or other commitments means that I will have a lot of time on my hands. What a perfect time and place to seek Yahweh.

     One verse that has been on my heart recently is Jeremiah 29:13, “you will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” This verse is a part of something that God told the elders of the exiled Israelites thousands of years ago through Jeremiah the prophet. It was spoken to a specific audience at a specific time in a specific place, but I believe that it is as true for us as it was for them. God WANTS to have a relationship with me. He WANTS to have one with you. How amazing is that? When I consider the heavens, the work of His hands, what is man that He is mindful of us? Why does the creator of the universe care about humanity as a whole, much less each individual person? I can’t fathom. I want to KNOW that God, not just know about Him. I am thirsty for Him right now! Like a deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for my God. He is good enough to call my heart when it is turned to things on earth and not things in Heaven. He is good enough to comfort me when I am hurting. He is good enough to hear my cry, even if I’ve only halfheartedly answered His call just that morning. He is good enough to answer odd little prayers offered in faith for His pleasure and mine. He is good enough to make it blatantly obvious in a variety of ways that He wants my full heart and my full attention—right now. O taste and see that the Lord is good! I want more of Him.

He wants more of me.

He wants more of you.

I guess the important question at this point is

Are you going to give more of yourself to Him?

“Yes” on its own is not a good enough answer. I think we all do far too much of saying nice things and not acting on them. Singing nice lyrics and not meditating on them. Making nice decisions and not living by them. So HOW are you going to give more of yourself to Him? Maybe you will give more of your time. Maybe you will spend intentional time with Him when you used to do something for you. Maybe you are going to serve others intentionally with a cheerful heart. Maybe you are going to support a mission, financially or with prayer. I hope you join with me in giving more of yourself to God. I hope you and I together will make this summer into a new adventure in our relationship with God. Oh, I am excited about this summer! What a beautiful life this is. God is good.

See you in six weeks!