“Looking Forward to the Summer”

I don’t know about you but I am looking forward to the summer.  Now that the graduation season is over and commencement exercises have come to an end, it is time to look forward to a season of the year that is known for vacations, rest, relaxation, renewal, and restoration.  It is also a season for outdoor activities, cookouts, recreation, visiting family and friends, and reunions. 

While I look forward to all of the things that are indicative of the summer, the primary reasons I look forward to the summer are spiritual.  Summer is one of the seasons of the year that reminds me of the rhythms of life.  Ecclesiastes 3:1 reminds me that, “there is a season and a time for everything under the sun.”  Summer time reminds me of the creative power of our God.  Genesis tells us that God created the heavens and the earth in six days and then rested on the seventh day.  God called the seventh day a Sabbath or holy day. 

God ordered life so that all creatures should enjoy a season of labor as well as a season of rest.  When we are in harmony with the rhythms of life, we usually find ourselves filled with hope, joy, peace, love and faith.  When we are out of harmony with the rhythms of life, we usually find ourselves separated from the fore mentioned fruit of the spirit.  When we are out of harmony with the rhythms of life, we usually find ourselves with feelings of helplessness, sadness, discord, hate and unfaithfulness.

Mankind is a spiritual being and we are made to live in harmony with all of God’s created order.  During the summer season, I challenge you to seek to live in harmony with God’s created order and may the prayer of St. Francis of Assisi speak to your heart and mind during this glorious and wonderful (albeit, hot) season of the year:

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.  Where there is hatred, let me sow love. Where there is injury, let me sow pardon.  Where there is doubt, let me sow faith.  Where there is despair, let me sow hope.   Where there is darkness, let me sow light.  Where there is sadness, let me sow joy.  O divine master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand, to be loved as to love.  For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

As we seek to live in harmony with all of God’s created order, let us also look forward to the following church activities and celebrations:

In June:  Recognition Sunday, Father’s Day, Vacation Bible School. 

In July, we look forward to celebrating our nation’s independence while honoring our dependence on God.  We also begin to prepare our hearts and minds for our Fall programs and ministries that we’ve allowed to rest during the summer. 

In August, we seek God's approval as we look forward to finalizing plans for our fall and winter events.

My hope and prayer is that your summer is filled with fun, relaxation, recreation, joy, peace, and love.  I pray that God will give you a vision for your personal ministry at Belle-Terrace and a desire to make a difference in the lives you are fortunate to touch.

In closing, I want to continue to rehearse for you, our Vision, Mission, Motto and Theme statements so that you might ascertain if we/you are on track with what we said we are about.

Our Vision is to reflect the love of God by actively ministering to the needs of all people with guidance and direction of the Holy Spirit. 

Our Mission is to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ in word and deed; to exercise the faith through caring service to others; to equip and enable the saints for Christian ministry; and to make disciples. 

Our Motto or Guiding Principle is to be Bible-based, Christ-centered, Spirit-led, and Mission-bound.

Our Theme is to “Build the Church While Making Disciples of Christ.” (note: The original theme of “building the church while winning souls to Christ” was challenged along theological lines that assert only Christ can win souls; our commission is to “make disciples.”)