“See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” Isaiah 43:19
Every summer, I love to re-read a classic devotional book called, Streams in the Desert by L. B. Cowman. Written originally in 1925, it has a wise, old-school feel. The name of the book originates from the idea of refreshment in Christ and the scriptures of Living Waters. After a hard year of homeschooling, this resource always gives offers much-needed encouragement.
When I read Isaiah 43:19 with the images of fresh water in the wilderness, it reminds me God wants to do something refreshing in our family and in our homeschool. However, if I keep pressing on with plans and busyness, I may never stop to see it. The summer season offers the chance to see something fresh at work in our family. It allows me to stop, to see, to hear, and to receive His guidance for the new thing He wants to inspire in the season ahead.
During the school year, I long for the idea of summer. I long for unscheduled and unstructured days. I dream of the carefree mornings and afternoons, free from zooming in the car from activity to activity. Instead, I treasure summer days filled with our favorite things like hikes in the park, stargazing, board games, and eating outside in the golden light.
During the summer, I long for the structure and order of the school day. I’m struggling to relax into knowing school will return soon enough. Rest is about trust. It’s trusting it’s okay to put all of the busyness aside and goof off for a while.
This summer my hope is to goof off. I want to set aside the constant doing for a little while. We have to wait and rest in Him. We have to pause and listen. We have to rest before journeying ahead. We have to be still enough to be ready for the new thing God is doing. We have to embrace the quiet so we have fresh eyes to see the streams in the desert.
I think about what my child needs most this summer. I go to the closet and I get out our favorite board games -- Settlers of Catan, Scrabble Apples, and Uno. I set up a puzzle we have been longing to do. I put out some books we have been saving to read in a slower season, which are purely fun. I’m practicing goofing off by creating an ecosystem of goodness, ready for us to enjoy.
My hope is to rest in Him. I wait with a hopeful heart for the new thing God will do in our family this year. I set aside my ruminations in favor of noticing this gorgeous moment of summer. I can’t wait to see what streams in the desert our loving Father will create in our lives this year. I surrender my spirit so I will be ready for the fresh thing He is doing in our family. I will trust and rest in Him.
Think
How can you refresh during the summer season?
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