Summer. There are many different definitions of the word. Merriam-Webster defines summer as "the warmest season of the year that is after spring and before autumn." But summer is so much more than that. In high school, summer was a break for family vacations that I thought were annoying, going to the beach, and waiting for school to roll around again. Now, after my second year in college, summer means something entirely different to me.
My summer has been a summer of "lervice:" learning + service = lervice. I started the summer with a nannying job and an unpaid internship at our local pregnancy center. I figured I would earn plenty of money to pay for books, have time to relax by my pool, and learn a little bit.
Boy was I wrong! After my nannying hours were cut down, I realized I would need another job. I applied to two retail places. After some phone tag and never getting a reply, I decided to return to my old retail job. God knew it was exactly where I needed to be since they were short staffed for the summer. My old boss and coworkers were so excited to have me back, and I was excited to be back!
I was excited about my internship. It was going to be thrilling, getting experience in a field I'm passionate about. But it turned out that all I did was lock and unlock a door, and welcome pregnant women into the center. I thought, "God, why I am I here? I don't do anything! I could be getting paid for something else!"
Then my nannying hours got cut down again - to zero. This summer was supposed to be fun, passionate and profitable! But instead, I got a summer of letdowns and disappointments.
So why am I telling you this depressing story about a summer turning out differently than I thought? My point is this: as Americans, we always have expectations. We think we can control our lives, make them as passionate and profitable as we can on our own. It's a lie. I lied to myself when I made my expectations up in my head.
Jesus tells us that He came to serve, not be served. He tells us we have to surrender our lives to Him. So often I find myself saying "Oh yeah, my life is surrendered to Christ." LIE.
In my summer of lervice, God taught me that I can show His love through a smile and unlocking a door. I can show His light checking someone out at my retail job. He reminded me that I am not on this earth to make money or have fun, but to SERVE Him and His people. If I'm not content and happy to serve Him in the small things, how can He entrust me to bigger things?
My summer of lervice isn't over yet! I am embracing wherever He leads me next and learning to be content in every season. Life will never meet our expectations. With God, life will EXCEED our expectations. We just have to be willing to let go of our selfish ambitions.
