Well, it is officially the summer of 2016. What are you looking to do with your summer of July and August? Are you having an important vacation time with your family? You are going to go somewhere with your family for the very first time. Or maybe it will be the last time that you are going to vacation in the summer with all of your kids. This might mean going to the family cottage for a going away party. Or, this might be the first summer without your spouse, and you just want to stay at home, and relax.
Since summer is different in all of our experiences, it might offer to us a time to find God, re-engage with God, or think about what God is all about. The summer is generally slower at work, except for farming and some other jobs, more people are on vacation, and the weather usually is better for just lounging around. It is a different summer for me, as I slow down, and think what I might do next in my life.
You might want to read the Gospel of Luke. It is one of four biographies that we have about Jesus. It is the third book of the New Testament. Jesus is a storyteller, a miracle worker and is an advocate for the outsiders in his community. In the biography, Jesus tells parables. These are short fictional stories that Jesus tells us to point us toward the kingdom of God. He takes possible everyday events, and then puts a twist on them at the end. People in the book often get angry with Jesus, because, I think, they see themselves in the parable. Often, when I read them, I like to find others in them. What would it mean for me this summer, to read the parables and find myself in them? If I find myself in the story, I might, or will, have to change my life in some or many ways. We all like to see ourselves as the persecuted in the story, but what if I am really the powerful and arrogant and violent person in the parable? What if I have to forgive someone 70×7 as it says in one parable of Jesus’. I might find God in a new way, if I read these stories from a different set of glasses.
What if I look up to the clouds at least once a day? Recently, I believe, that God is showing me the clouds differently. It seems to me that I see them more now. When it is sunny, the light that shines onto the clouds and sky is amazing. It really is all about the light. If it really cloudy, the sun plays a different role in my seeing. The light shines more darkly. It is almost like in music when it is in the minor key. There is danger in that music, just like there is danger in the dark clouds. What might God show you in the clouds? You cannot control the clouds in any way. The clouds might flow east or west or in a circle. Take a few minutes this summer or a few hours a day, to look at the clouds. What might you learn about God, about the creation, and about yourself?
And, if you have the time, you might want to listen to someone’s story. Maybe your grandmother or your great uncle, or your spouse or your teenager daughter. Or, maybe a complete stranger that might be sitting on one of those benches in Gore Park. Or maybe you have never talked to the person that owns the cottage next to you. Or it might be on an airplane, as you travel to a place that is on your bucket list.
I invite you to find God, however you define that existence beyond ourselves, this summer. Listen to the Word, listen to the clouds and listen to each other. You will find something beyond yourself that will change you being. Enjoy the ride this summer.