Dear Reader,
Welcome to a new season! According to Shakespeare, “Summer’s lease has all too short a date.” For that reason, I want to savor every second.
I associate some of the fondest memories of my childhood with this wonderful season.
Running around barefoot, catching June bugs, making mud pies, slurping watermelon, riding my bike, playing hide and seek, chasing fireflies, eating homemade ice cream and Kool-aid popsicles, fishing, camping, visiting the zoo . . . no screen time, no worries, just childhood innocence . . . totally being content to spend hours playing Monopoly on the cool concrete floor of my neighbor’s garage . . . . These are some of my best childhood memories of summer.
Scheduled weeks also revolved around church camp, Vacation Bible School, and time in the country visiting my grandparents and walking the hills and hollows of their farm. Yes, those were the days. I thought they’d never end!
After abandoning childhood and becoming a teacher, I viewed summers as a time to re-discover my sanity. As soon as I caught up on a little sleep, I devoured books: Danielle Steel and Mary Higgins Clark and Nicholas Sparks. My early summer reading included light-hearted romance novels, predictable whodunits, and YA books I thought my students would enjoy.
Later I would delve into historical fiction or biographies like Pillars of the Earth and Salinger. By the first week of July, I was preparing lesson plans and compiling my Honors English 2 reading list.
Today my priorities have changed. As a retired teacher, I no longer need time for sanity reassessment (I don’t think), and I’m a ravenous reader year-round. In addition, I have found more time to connect with the Word.
In her devotional book The Joy of My Heart, Anne Graham Lotz tells us that God’s Word has the power to give our minds and emotions and will a new dimension. She encourages us to enrich our lives with Bible study.
“Does your life feel confined? Do you sometimes have the uneasy feeling that something is missing, that there must be something more to life than what you are experiencing? That you are not fulfilling your potential? Then open your heart and mind to God’s Word and ask Him to give your life an added dimension.”
Because all of life’s seasons have “all too short a date,” I now appreciate those daily moments when I can “study to show [myself] approved unto God.” So many wonderful devotionals offer these opportunities.
One of this quarter’s giveaways is a ninety-day devotional entitled Summer: A Season of Joy. The writers tag summer as “a season of warmth and relaxation, a season of freedom and refreshment.”
“We spend time enjoying the ones we love, basking in the sun, strolling on the sand, or exploring new and exciting places. We take a break from our fast-paced schedules, invest in relationships, and give ourselves a chance to breathe.”
I certainly hope you are finding time to do just that.
The entry “Playing Make-Believe” takes the reader back to those childhood memories and make-believe moments, and it encourages us to re-capture those dreams.
“What dreams are you still holding on to? Enjoy the process of getting to those dreams and remember that God wants your happiness.”
“Peace like a River” reminds us of one of the greatest gifts of God: “His undeniable, unfathomable peace. It is a deep well that comes with knowing and experiencing Jesus’ love.”
Each entry in this devotional book offers a scripture passage, a short reminder of the benefits of the season, a space for reflection, and a closing prayer—ninety wonderful ways to celebrate this season of joy.
My second summer giveaway is Michelle Medlock Adams’ Dinosaur Devotions, which I highlighted in my February blog “Digging for Deeper Understanding.” This adorable devo features “75 Dino Discoveries, Bible Truths, Fun Facts, and More.”
This book also offers an opportunity for children to hone their writing skills during the summer months. Take it from an English teacher—a child needs year-round writing and reading practice.
Here are some examples of these “Jurassic Journalings”:
- Write your to-do list for the day, and then ask God to help you get everything done on your list.
- Pretend you’re a reporter covering important people in history, and you’ve been assigned to write about you. Now write an article about the future you—all of the things you’ve accomplished in your life.
- Do you love learning? Write about some topics you’d love to learn more about in the future.
Both Summer: A Season of Joy and Dinosaur Devotions are now available as giveaways IF you are a newsletter subscriber AND if you comment with a favorite summertime activity OR a favorite scripture verse. Also, please indicate which devotion you would like to win. Deadline to enter this giveaway is midnight June 24. Winners will be announced on June 25.
I hope you are able to savor your summer, enjoy your reading, and experience God’s peace all around you.
Blessings!
The Literary Lyonesse
“I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer.”—F. Scott Fitzgerald
“The crickets felt it was their duty to warn everybody that summertime cannot last forever.”—E. B. White
“Summer breeze makes me feel fine, blowin’ through the jasmine in my mind.”—Seals and Crofts
Proverbs 6:8; Proverbs 30:25; Matthew 24:32; Psalm 84:11
I can’t envision you making mud pies as a kid. But, in times gone by we all did things we wouldn’t do today….I know I gave a few. Setting on the deck wrapped in a sweater; as it’s cold, I am just reading emails and yours popped up. I always find them to be fun to read and thought provoking.
Have a terrific week and enjoy this cooler day.
Joyce- my same memories.bb
Brings back sweet memories!
Reading was like a walk down memory lane!