Summer of Love

Summer Love is a popular theme-setting for romance novels. I fell in love with my husband during the summer, and I have written several books where the main characters either fall in love over the course of these mid-year months or at least meet during that time. I think one of the reasons this happens in real-life, not only in books, is because summer often involves more time with others than usual. Without school and our regular routines to get in the way, there is more opportunity for meeting new people or having fun and relaxing times with those we already know--but we may have been too busy to notice before.


Summer is a good time for new things to happen. It might be something unplanned like making new friends or even falling in love, but it can also be a time to set goals or try something new. Similar to the way we set New Year's Resolutions, we can also think of summer as a mid-year new start. Longer days, more free time, or being involved in a focused summer ministry can provide windows of opportunity the rest of the year may lack. With that being said, what do you have planned for this summer? What do you foresee happening in the next three months before school starts again and you get back to "regular life"?

No matter what your plans are, how lazy or busy your days may be, (or even if you live in the southern hemisphere and winter is before you instead of summer), I'd like to offer a few suggestions of how you can be intentional about how you spend the coming months and how you can live a season of love. I will use the word LOVE as an acronym for living these months with purpose, focus, and joy.

L is for Listen:

Start the new season by listening. What is God saying to you? If you don't know, spend time with Him and listen for how He is leading you, what He wants to teach you, and any changes you need to make. This might involve specific plans, saying yes or no to certain activities, being involved in a summer ministry, going to camp, hanging out with family or friends--whatever. But are you listening? Are you allowing God to direct your steps or just doing your own thing?

Listening also involves hearing and believing the truth. Are you believing in God's love for you? Are you believing in your value and worth to Him? Do you believe He cares about your life and how you live it? Do you believe He has good things in store? If you are feeling like a failure, hopeless, or it's just been a bad year so far, do you believe He can rescue you? Do you believe He can give you a fresh start?

Whatever your starting point, listening is the first step to what comes next. In Isaiah 55, God says, "Listen to me, and you will eat what is good. You will enjoy the finest food." He's not talking about what you put into your mouth; He's using food as a metaphor for what is best for you. He knows what you need. He knows what will make you thrive. "Come to me with your ears wide open. Listen and you will find life."

O is for Opportunity:

If you have a lot of free time ahead of you, how can you use that as an opportunity to try something new, grow in your faith, or reach out in love to others? Or if you're going to be busy, how can your busyness be productive? How can you make the most of whatever opportunities are before you? Live with purpose. Live intentionally. Love intentionally.

In Isaiah 55, God also reminds the people how He displayed His power through King David. He was a mere shepherd-boy God raised up to be a great leader. And He says, "I will give you all the unfailing love I promised to David...I, the LORD your God, have made you glorious."

No matter who you are, where you are, or what you are doing, God's glory can shine through you. There are always opportunities to make a difference, trust God more, and allow Him to guide you each day. This might involve helping out around the house, spending time with your siblings or a friend who is lonely, helping out at your church or in your community. It doesn't have to be "big" things. Look for opportunities to do the small things as well as taking on larger tasks, goals, or projects.

V is for Virtue:

First of all, let me define virtue. Virtue is any behavior that displays moral values or standards. Synonyms of virtue include: goodness, integrity, decency, and purity. Love itself is a virtue, along with honesty, patience, and kindness. How can virtue be a part of whatever you spend your time doing? How you treat others? How you do your work? How you help others?

How you do something is just as important as what you are doing. You might have an opportunity of a lifetime to travel, be involved in a unique ministry, or take steps to make your future dreams come true, but pride, arrogance, and poor choices could drastically alter your experience. So listen. How is God leading you or speaking to you about what is to come? How can you make the most of it? What virtues are important to consider when starting out and making daily choices along the way?

If you aren't doing anything this summer that seems very significant, or you're not sure what lies ahead, virtue still plays a huge role. You might wish you were doing something more exciting or that you had specific plans, but your attitude can be the difference between a boring summer and an amazing one. Sometimes the best things happen when you don't plan them. "My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts," says the LORD. "And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine." (Is. 55:8)

Just having an open heart, helpful hands, and making the most of every opportunity might lead to things you never dreamed. Spreading goodness, kindness, and joy to others--that's enough of a plan. Combine it with listening to God and looking for opportunities around you: that's a recipe for a summer of love.

E is for Encouragement:

Finally, I want to encourage you to hope for the best. No matter what you do or don't do in the coming months, God goes before you and He will lead you. He wants the best for you. He wants you to feel loved, valued, worth His time, and as someone who has so much to offer others. If He has led you to make specific plans this summer, trust Him each day, ask for His guidance, rely on His strength, and believe everything is going just as He has planned it, even if things go sideways. Failure or success is a matter of perspective, not results. Trust Him to lead you and trust Him with the outcome, no matter what that may be.

If you have no plans, either because you haven't felt led in a particular way, you said no to a specific opportunity, or you just haven't thought about it until now, be encouraged that it's not too late. There is still plenty of time to listen, take whatever opportunities come your way, and make virtue a part of everything you do. Just pray, love, seek God, and believe you can have a wonderful season before you.

Seek the LORD while you can find him.

Call on him now while he is near.

Isaiah 55:6

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
 
Love sign photo by Terri-Ann Hanlon/Freeimages.com
Girl photo by gilles van leeuwen/Freeimages.com