Embrace the Summer!

The following is the July, 2010 artilcle I wrote for my column, "Sense"sational Musings for www.ithirstnw.net:

Oh yes, it’s summertime, and it’s HOT! It is so hot, sometimes I feel like I’m in a desert. Do you feel like that? How about spiritually speaking? Do you feel like you cannot sense the Lord’s presense? You know He’s there, but you cannot hear His voice, feel His embrace or see His hand.

May I suggest to you today to embrace the dry times? WHAT?! Yes, that is what I said, “Embrace the dry times!” Why? Because, when you do, that is what is going to help you to soak in more when God finally pours His rain on you and you sense His presence once again. That’s what David did when he was in the wilderness.

Psalm 63:1 - A Psalm of David when he was in the wilderness of Judah. O God, You [are] my God; Early will I seek You; My soul thirsts for You; My flesh longs for You In a dry and thirsty land where there is no water.

On the flip side of that, I also suggest to embrace the times of soaking. When you do, you will be more apt to remember those revelations God blessed you with when you go through the next drought. That is what will carry you through.

We need to remember that God created dryness as much as he created water. He appoints the times and seasons in our lives.

Genesis 1:9 - And God said, Let the waters under heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.
Psalm 95:5 - The sea is His and He made it; and His hands formed dry land.

God will decide when the dry spell stops and when rain begins. He also decides when rain stops and dryness begins.

Psalm 107:33, 35 - He turns rivers into a wilderness, and the watersprings into dry ground. (35) He turns the wilderness into a standing water, and dry ground into watersprings.

Embracing whatever season you are in will allow you to be ripe for discerning the plans and purposes He has in store for you. Many times when we experience God in incredible ways, times of spiritual drought seem to follow. However, what looks and feels like drought to us is something more. God is still working through that time whether we sense it or not. Remember, it was the Holy Spirit who led Jesus into the wilderness after His water baptism. The enemy came it at the end and tried to take advantage of Jesus’ time of hunger after 40 days of fasting. He tempted Jesus, but Jesus did not fall for it. Instead, He remained focused and reminded satan what the Word said. The devil then left Jesus and angels came to minister to Him. His ministry was then launched.

So, I guess that means that dry times in our lives are actually blessings! Let’s take a quick look at times in the Bible when dry times were answers to prayer.

1. Noah’s family and animals were finally able to depart the ark and walk on dry land.
2. The children of Israel escaped a life of slavery and passed through the Red Sea on dry land.
3. The children of Israel crossed over the Jordan River on dry land to enter the Promised Land.
4. Jonah was spit out of the belly of the fish onto dry land and given a second chance after disobeying God’s call to Ninevah.

As you go through your summer, embrace it! Know that this season will soon be over, and God will take you through the next season with even more revelation because of what you are going through now. Rest assured knowing that this, too, shall pass!

Isaiah 44:3 - I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground; I will pour my spirit upon your seed, and my blessing upon your offspring.

Summertime, and the Livin' is Easy!

Can you believe it is all ready July 24? Summer is practically over. For my daughter, Amy, who just entered High School marching band, it is over. As I look back over the last couple of months, I am especially grateful for my family.

Three weeks ago, we took a vacation to the beach with the girls and my parents in-law. Cape San Blas, FL just outside of Port St. Joe on the Gulf of Mexico...if you like a place where the water is clear, the sand is soft and white, the shells are plentious but the people are few, you would love it there! It is so secluded that the closest grocery store, Piggly Wiggly, is 15-20 miles away! Our townhome for the week was about 20 yards from the pool and 30 yards from the beach. It was everything a vacation should be! I enjoyed my husband, girls and in-laws. We read books, took naps, swam, walked the beach, had bon fires on the beach at night and made s'mores, enjoyed quiet times with God, and capped it off the last night watching multiple 4th of July firework shows on the sea shore.

Last week my husband, Bill, and I were privileged to go off to a cabin in the North Georgia mountains while our girls were at different camps...all by ourselves for 4 days! We celebrated 23 awesome years as husband and wife. God had a theme going of seclusion, rest and relaxation for the second time within 3 weeks! Besides enjoying some great romantic times (of which I'll keep private!), Bill and I enjoyed the hot tub, walks in the mountains picking wild blackberries, naps, tubing down the Toccoa River, reading, and quiet time with God. When we got back, someone said to me, "You mean you're not tired of being with each other?" The thought had never even entered my mind. I thank God for blessing our marriage and being in the center of our union. Bill and I are so compatible and love being with each other. When one of us has "issues," the other just backs off and lets the spouse have space. It works!

As I blog about these two summer vacations, I am so thankful for the incredible time of bonding I had with my family. God blessed me with great family ties...both with our immediate family and extended family. I do not take that lightly. With God's help, we will continue the legacy of passing the faith along until Jesus comes again!