- Trina Paulus

"Make room for that which is capable of rejoicing, enlarging, or calming the heart."  

~ Gerhardt Tersteegn

The season of summer takes us all in different directions... and I've been missing you...

A season of reflection reminds me that friendship is such an essential part of living a life of faith. Being a faithful friend, like anything else, is not always easy. There are times when all we may want is a friend to wallow with us in our feelings of doubt, frustration or hopelessness. But a faithful friend doesn't sit with us in those spaces indefinitely.

A faithful friend assures us that there is faith and hope and lifts us up when we are down. A faithful friend helps carry the heavy things in life with us, never alone, never with a thud in her step. A faithful friend comes alongside of us when we don't know that we need her.

A faithful friend brings traces of God when we lose them ourselves. She brings wisdom when we doubt, and when we struggle with a discouraging season, she reminds us of God's work in the history of our lives. Faithful friends understand that in friendship we take turns bearing the weight of faith, hope and love.

~~~~~~

"Faithful friends call us to mine for joy, to cheesily count our blessings, to remember that life is to be lived, to face our fears, and to walk, run, or limp our way towards God each new day."

- Enuma Okoro

"Two is better than one, if one falls down, the other can help [her] up..."

I'm convinced we have two choices every summer... give in to the heat and humidity and go at the season with vigor and sweat -- or hide from the heat any chance we can get.

Air conditioning is a wonderful thing, but sometimes I fear it robs us of those moments of abandon which we can only find in summer.

In summer I find my youth and creativity.  A rule-follower by nature, I actually break some rules.  I blast the music in my car at levels I've always said were inappropriate.  I let dishes pile in the sink. We all stay up way too late and enjoy more ice cream and popcorn than is reasonable.

We live in that part of our country where summer brings the inevitable humidity. I am reminded of Dr. Seuss's classic book "Summer". A one word title book packed with sweaty, summer word pictures... images of swings, sun, sand, softball and fire-flies... drippy ice cream cones, bicycles, heat, cloud drawn pictures in the sky and the slow, lingering time.  

As children we wiped away the humidity and ran faster. As adults, we properly adjust our activities and try to manage the balmy heat, keeping a 'dewy glow' without breaking into a sweat.  One morning spent with my six year old nephew reminded me of just how proper I had become.  

What a spiritual picture for me!

Does my spiritual energy pursue God with a wake up morning joy, honest curiosity and earnest pursuit that sometimes might take a tumble or even break out into a sweat?   

Am I just a bit too staid and appropriate?  

Are my journal notes ordered just so, and is my worship tentative?

I want to push through the sweaty seasons of change... contentent, obedience, tough decision making, and prayerful waiting with a spiritual passion that is real, active and life changing. I want to be filled with God's purpose and assurance.

A wise friend shared this priceless quote with me, "We should not arrive at death's door all prim and proper in a pretty and well-preserved body.  Instead we ought to arrive breathlessly, skidding broadside through the pearly gates, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming, "WOW! What a ride!"  [source: "Laughter from Heaven" by Barbara Johnson] 

I want to know that each day in every season is filled with moments that make me feel God's passion within me. 

I want to call on the name of the Lord

because I know He hears me [Psalm 5:1-3].

I guess I really do want to sweat.

So let's pursue God daily 

at an earnest pace.

 
Let's move from our comfortable places and ask God to use us for His purpose each and every day.  

Let's look with wide childlike eyes at the things around us and listen with ears willing to hear correction, direction and truth --- and respond with obedience, wise discernment and surrender.

Let's break a sweat.   

"The LORD is near to all who call on him,

to all who call on him in truth." [Psalm 145:18]

~~~~~~~~ 

Next weekend is CONNECT'11!

August 12-13-14 

God is doing His work around the world. CONNECT'11 is your opportunity to personally meet some of our ministry partners, learn about what God is doing around the world, and hear the work that is happening to further the Kingdom of God here on earth.   

CLICK HERE to see the schedule for CONNECT'11 

In addition to workshops, home dinner and several special events, there are hands on happenings for children of all ages (including teens!).

This Sunday, August 7, is the final time to sign up for events at CONNECT '11. Be sure to stop by the table in the lobby this Sunday or email outreach@visitccc.com with any questions.

Summer is the season for bees! 

In the United States, there are over 4,000 species of native bees. Familiar bees visiting garden flowers are the colorful, fuzzy, yellow-and-black striped bumblebees, metallic-green sweat bees, squash bees, and imported honeybee. These flower-seeking pollen magnets purposefully visit flowers to collect pollen and nectar for food for themselves and their young.

The work of the bee pollination is also very important to the growth of your garden. When a bee visits a flower, pollen from that flower sticks to the bee. The bee flys to another flower of the same type and pollen that was stuck to the bee gets brushed onto the pistil of the flower. This movement of the bee in the garden allows the plants to develop seeds and fruit.

What about us? What are we pollinating?

What does our movement create among the people we 'brush against' every day? Are we too busy to see our  Here are some thoughts to ponder about what God's view of  our lives... 

• God won't ask what kind of car you drove. He'll ask how many people you drove who didn't have transportation.
• God won't ask in what neighborhood you lived, He'll ask how you treated your neighbors.
• God won't ask about the color of your skin, He'll ask about the content of your character.
• God won't ask the square footage of your house, He'll ask how many people you welcomed into your home.
• God won't ask about the clothes you had in your closet, He'll ask how many you helped to clothe.
• God won't ask what your highest salary was. He'll ask if you compromised your character to obtain it.
• God won't ask what your job title was. He'll ask if you performed your job to the best of your ability.
• God won't ask how many friends you had. He'll ask how many people to whom you were a friend.

Is there someone you should reach out to today... brush up against in friendship and grace?  

Is there a place in your life where you need to pollinate God's love?

~~~~~~

"If we are willing to hold our resources with an open hand, there's no telling what God can do."

- Debbie Macomber, One Simple Act

"Love is patient.

Parenting's this gentle way of bending over in humility to help the scraped child up because we intimately know it takes a lifetime to learn how to walk with Him.

Patience.

Love always begins with patience."

- Anne Voskamp

"My children will not remember the words of wisdom I've passed along the years, nor will yours remember the good advice you've given.  

However, etched in their minds and planted in their hearts is a permanent picture of who you are and how you've lived before them."

- Dorothy Kelley Patterson

 -Sarah Zacharias Davis, The Friends We Keep