Summer days

I look forward to any day when the sun is shining. The grass grows very quickly in the back yard and needs to be taken care of, but one cannot mow the lawn on a wet day. Pulling the weeds on the driveway, on the other hand, is easily done in the rain, although it is not very pleasant. Keeping up on these kinds of activities are normal things for the summer. 

Summer in Belgium can have some very warm days. And since we are not that used to warm, a “warm” day can be anything from about 80 degrees Fahrenheit on. We may even get several days in a row of these sort of temperatures and then the weather men and women will speak of a heat wave. But most of the time it is going to be comfortably warm and we will try to keep up on house maintenance. 

Summer is also time for our Bible camps. We have always been involved with the camp weeks. Since returning last week from our quick visit to the US to meet our granddaughter, Scott has also been down to camp to mow the grass there. That is a bit more of a task than our backyard, but just as necessary. The camp weeks will begin next week and the camp terrain needs to be ready. Since we are within a 50 minute ride to camp, we are glad to be able to help with many things down at camp. We also drop down to take care that the trash is put out on the days to be picked up. In this way camp is ready for all of the activity coming up. 

Our other activities usually hit a bit of a hiatus for a few months. Our weekly Bible studies go on hold as most people head off for vacation or are busy with camp weeks, as are we. Other tasks, like caring for people and bringing them to hospital, do of course continue. This doesn't mean that we drop all contact. We continue to write, call, email and communicate with all of the people with whom we have been studying and talking. 

This is also a time for planning and preparing for the time after the summer. We have a youth day, a family day, a day for singing and a day for the church together all set on the calendar for after the camp weeks. Some of these are activities for the churches to encourage fellowship and growth in faith. Others are times that we can reach out to the people around us with the good news we have found in Jesus. 

In the congregation we are working on dealing with some changes in the make-up of the congregation. One of our families has moved away while we have had new people move to the city. Since Maastricht is a university city, we often get people who are here for a short time while they are studying. There is also a military base close by, so we may also get military members for a time. We are always thrilled with how God blesses us with these shorter visits and look forward to how we, too, can bless these people while they are here. 

What do your summers look like? How does God use you in these warmer months?