the start of school

Summer is coming to an end. Goodbye to vacations, youth camps, interns running all over our campus, swimming at the river, and getting wounded playing ultimate Frisbee. For those of you who don’t know, summer is my absolute favorite time of year. You can keep Christmas, Thanksgiving, Spring Break and even Arbor Day. Just give me the bright Texas sun (or this year: rowdy summer storms) and turn me loose. I work longer, play harder, and stay up later during the summer than any other time of year. I am most aware that I am a beloved child of God during the summer months.

By the time fall arrives, I am ready for it. I begin to look forward to new routines, to seeing folks that have been scattered throughout the summer. I look forward to the start of Day School and the little ones holding hands as they move down the halls. I begin to peek out the windows around the time school lets out to watch all the youth of our community come flying out of Lockhill and Clark. Our worship services swell with people who are determined to start this year off right. New Sunday school classes and mid-week Bible studies form. You can no longer find a parking spot on campus at any time of day or night!

I come screaming full tilt out of summer into fall full of life and love. I am reminded of God’s goodness and filled to overflowing with his mercy. It is a chance to live out the call of Christ in our schools, on the sports fields, and everyplace we gather. In Matthew 5.13-16, Jesus issues this word: “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”

Over the course of the summer we experience the greatness of knowing Christ at SOS, Chrysalis, Operation Paintbrush, Student Life, and even in a big shaving cream bubble! We spend the summer on the mountaintop letting God speak to us and shape our character and commitment. My encouragement for you is to remain steadfast in the commitments you have made this summer. The time you have spent with God this summer needs to be shared with your friends and classmates who don’t know about Jesus. Take this opportunity when people are focused on a new season and new beginning to live out your “saltiness.” Don’t let others make you bland in your fervor for Jesus Christ. Jesus has placed a light in you that has the power to outshine even the darkest darkness. Don’t cover that light up or put it away now that school is upon us.What have you to do, but save souls? God has given you your schools and neighborhoods as mission fields to share Christ and serve Christ by serving others. Make a Godly start to this new year. My prayers and presence are with you. Blessing upon you all in the name of our Lord, Jesus Christ for whom we live and breathe.