Summer is here! Many people I know spend the rest of the year looking forward to this time of year. Some look forward to spending time at the beach, some in the mountains. Still, others look forward to being home tending a garden or spending relaxing evenings in the back yard. Fishing, camping, spending warm evenings star gazing, riding bicycles, we can do this summer. Outdoor festivals and concerts, baseball games at the local stadium, auto racing at the local tracks, those we won’t be doing this summer. Typically, we need to get all those activities in between Memorial Day and Labor Day because after the Fair, after Labor Day, well, we get ready for the next season: football. Or, as some call it, autumn. And of course, after that…we can’t talk about that now. But there will be no Fair this year. While autumn will come, football is still questionable.
We cannot control the comings and goings of the seasons. Those are a gift from God. And even though we prefer one season over another, we cannot choose to accept or refuse. Similarly, we can’t choose a pandemic or no pandemic. While this may surprise you to read the pandemic could be described as a gift from God also, from the perspective of how we respond. God has given us the ability to be content in all circumstances if we so choose. What we can choose is how we will respond to the gifts He offers. Not only the gift of summer but all of the gifts we are offered.
The Bible tells us that all good gifts come from God. As we enjoy the many activities that the summer offers that we can participate in, let’s remember to give thanks for the ability, opportunity, and the choice to enjoy the many gifts.
So let’s all choose to enjoy the summer. And give thanks.
First Baptist Church of East Aurora
Where Family Comes First
