Best Laid Plans of Mice and...Pastors...

Yet Another Busy Summer

Howdy Reader!

It’s been a bit. I know…I know…I said that I would do my best to write at least once a week. But alas…here I am almost half way through July and I think I’ve only written one other time this summer, and it was during Children’s Camp.

I used to look forward to summer for different reasons than I do now. When I was a teenager, I used to look forward to all the fun things we would do. I had multiple friends with pools, which meant I had the best of both worlds: free access to a pool/and I didn’t have to clean it. Then there were camps, church camp, Vacation Bible School, where we got to be the “big kids on campus,” and then the fun summer events we would often have.

But now, while I look forward to many of the same fun things we do as a pastoral family, I find myself half way through the summer starting to think about other things.

One thing you may not know about me is that while I am writing, I often listen to music; specifically I listen to piano music. Because I have Amazon Prime which comes with Amazon Music I found a station called Piano Hymns. Songs like “Nearer my God to The,” and “Pass Me Not O Gentle Savior,” along with “Blessed Assurance” not only keep my mind focused, but also keep me grounded in the hymns of the faith.

But something happened the other day. When I turned on the station, I pressd shuffle, and about an hour into my writing, A Christmas song came on.

After I was taken aback slightly by a sound from my favorite time of the year, my mind started to wander into other places. First, there’s football. We are a couple of weeks away from my son going to football camp as he begins his 8th Grade year. Then there’s Volleyball, where my daughters play in a YMCA league in one town over from where we live.

Then I started to think about cooler weather, and Thanksgiving, then that good feeling I get in my stomach when I start thinking about Egg Nog and Peppermint Mocha Cold Brew Coffees.

I started to feel myself well up with joy at the thoughts of the impending seasons. But then, in an instant, I was brought back to reality as I stepped outside in 100 degree + heat.

Talk about a smack to the face.

The reality is, I often find myself looking forward to what’s next. I am a planner. I’m not perfect at it, but I do feel that my life is better organized when I know what I’m preaching months in advance, and I’m always planning for the next liturgical season on the calendar. But then I am reminded of a short piece of Scripture from Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8:

A Time for Everything

3 There is a time for everything,
    and a season for every activity under the heavens:

²     a time to be born and a time to die,
    a time to plant and a time to uproot,
³     a time to kill and a time to heal,
    a time to tear down and a time to build,
⁴     a time to weep and a time to laugh,
    a time to mourn and a time to dance,
⁵     a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
    a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
⁶     a time to search and a time to give up,
    a time to keep and a time to throw away,
⁷     a time to tear and a time to mend,
    a time to be silent and a time to speak,
⁸     a time to love and a time to hate,
    a time for war and a time for peace.

Everything happens in its due time.

So, while we may all be busy, and we may all be looking forward to the next thing, my hope is you will take a moment to stop and to live in the moment. Sure, it’s hot right now, but there is work to be done, and life to be lived…right here and right now.

Be present with your families. Be present with your Church family. Most importantly, be present with the God who loves you.

And as always,

Stay Hungry for God, My Friends
Pastor Bryan

Oh…and P.S.