Column 1: Summer Space

I hope you are staying cool amid the oppressive heat we are experiencing in Texas! As I write this, the Weather Channel app on my phone says that the current heat index is 111 degrees. Having lived in Texas since 1986, I keep thinking I will come to welcome this kind of heat, but it just hasn’t taken yet.

I have, however, come to appreciate one element of Texas’ summers: the heat forces us to slow down. If we allow it, the heat can create a kind of space in our busy lives. I am ever more convinced that, to grow spiritually and to mature into the people God dreams for us to become, we need more space in our hectic lives for the Holy Spirit to work in and through us.

In the last nine months, I’ve experienced the benefit of new space in my life, though it was not brought on by the summer weather but rather by a cancer diagnosis and resultant treatment. This new space was not something I would have chosen for myself; it was a phenomenon that happened to me. But, in what can only be accounted for by God’s amazing grace, God found a way to work something good out of something terrible by creating this space for reflection and growth.

One of the things the Holy Spirit is doing in my life in this newfound space is that she has planted and nurtured within me the seed of an idea: I need to write more, specifically, to write to you more. In speaking with others, I have had this conviction confirmed, and it is now taking shape in the form of a weekly column for our church. This writing is the first fruit of the conviction borne in this new space in my spiritual life.

I intend to write a column nearly every week for a year; some will be brief, others perhaps longer, and we will explore a wide variety of subject matters. I intend to write about what’s going on at UPUMC and the UMC, spiritual matters and spiritual practices, the saints in our stories, life lessons, and whatever else seems germane now. The column will help keep us connected and help you to continue to know the story of what God is doing in and through UPUMC in new ways. I have no doubt my writing will grow and improve as well! I am thankful for the work of the Spirit in this new space in my life: I woke up yesterday morning thinking about this project, and before I knew it, I had written down fifty different topics to cover before breakfast!

All of this leads me to wonder, what kind of space is God inviting you to shape in your own life? The mid-summer heat provides an excellent opportunity to take a deep breath and assess your life. Is your relationship with God what you would like it to be? If not, what plans might you consider to create a few more minutes with God daily for the fall? Like the father in the story of the Prodigal Son, God is scanning the horizon, eagerly looking for you.

Why not start now? This Sunday, we will discuss how to stay connected and grow our relationship with God through spiritual practices. We will explore God’s invitation to grow with God in worship and the Pastor’s Summer Sunday School Lesson. I look forward to seeing you in the 8:45 or 11:00 services and at 9:45 in the Fellowship Hall for our all-church Sunday School time.

Have a wonderful weekend, and may you find some space to take a deep breath and rest in the fact that God loves you more than you can imagine!

Grace and peace,

Rev. Joe Stobaugh