Not another September!!

September is nearly upon us! For many of us this spells a return to daily routine of school runs, work commitments and the church calendar moving back into full swing! The summer has been great. Personally for us, we have enjoyed a trip to Gibraltar to spend time with extended family, a camping trip with good friends, days out and lots of adventures together. I have loved the pace of church life slowing down a little in order to enjoy some family time. I have loved being with Hayley and the kids and not really having to worry about life for a few months. If you are anything like me, the summer is just a time to constantly smile whilst giving those batteries a much needed recharge! 

 

It’s difficult to say goodbye to the excitement of summer and for many it can leave us feeling anxious and down. Why can’t we have more adventures? Why is day to day life so boring? Why do I have to go back to 7am alarms and school runs?! Not another church meeting?! 

 

If we are not careful, we can despise the everyday things of life whilst constantly looking forward to next summer when we can have more excitement again (or whatever the equivalent is for you). It’s easy to feel like our regular day-to-day lives don’t matter. 

 

The other thing I, of course, loved doing this summer was catching up with the Olympic games. I love the random sports, cheering on team GB or whichever underdog I have taken a liking to. Like most people, I become a self-professed expert in sports that I barely even know the rules to, deeply critiquing gymnasts routines or tight technical calls in the skateboarding or surfing. I adored the Olympics and they were the background to my few weeks off work at the start of the month. Even the kids joined in with Olympic mania - my son Ezra actually took himself off in a strop when team GB failed to win a medal in one particular BMX race. We loved celebrating these athletes who became heroes for their nation, whose lives stood out as they became Olympic champions. Again though, if we aren’t careful, this can feed into our resentment of the everyday life which is lurking around the corner as we enter September. 

 

Why can’t I achieve anything like these Olympians?! Will no one ever remember my name? Does my life mean anything? 

 

Of course, I’m being dramatic, kind of. As Christians we know that our lives have a purpose, we are known and loved by God (Psalm 139:1). He has amazing plans for our life (Jeremiah 29:11); he knows the deepest parts of our life but still chooses to accept us and wants to know us (1 Kings 8:39, Romans 5:6-8). That is a given. Even as Christians, though, we can feel like if God isn’t using us for amazing things, if we aren’t leading hundreds of people to Jesus or working in huge ministry organisations, that our life is being wasted. It’s something that we often drum into teenagers at large Christian gatherings - ‘be a history maker’, ‘change the world’, ‘God is going to use you for amazing things’ - only to see many of these teenagers walk away from God as soon as the mundanity of school kicks in. 

 

I want to say, despite painting quite a depressing picture at the start of this article, really we shouldn’t fear or despise the start of ‘normal life’ again. I’ve wrestled with this a lot (you know me, I love being honest!!). I’ve struggled with the idea of getting back into reality so much so that Hayley and I are already dreaming up dates for next summer’s getaway! As I have been feeling sorry for myself and dreading September, I have also been reading Natalie William’s excellent new book ’Tis Mercy All’. This is a fantastic read and something which I could write a whole blog about in itself. One particular chapter though caught me by surprise as it didn’t really follow the theme of the rest of the book. She spoke right into how I was feeling about heading back into ‘ordinary’ day to day life. This is what she said; 

 

 

That is exciting and encouraging - even during my cold winter morning school runs I can make an impact. God is able to work through the small interactions we have with others. In your office, in your school, in your day-to-day God is at work and can use you for his purposes. Natalie Williams goes on to say; 

 

 

Now I’m sure she is not meaning to squash our dreams here but rather paint a real picture of what life should be like for us. We remain faithful in the small things and realise that life isn’t about us at all! It’s about God and his purposes which I’m certain he can work out despite how mundane my life may seem! 

 

If we grasp the fact that God can work just as much in the things that seem most mundane then suddenly we no longer despise them, but celebrate the life God has given us. We stop always looking for the next big moment, the next experience and just rest in the fact that we are known and loved by God.  Even if that was all that we had, it would be enough. Being known and loved by the creator of heaven and earth - wow! 

 

The amazing thing is that it is much more than that. God CAN and does use our daily lives as opportunities to display his goodness and point people towards him. We can show other people that there is a better way to live, that there is hope found in Jesus! You can be part of someone’s story of transformation and, the best part, you can do it from the most boring day-to-day parts of your life. That is the honour that we have as believers, and the beauty that comes from the fact that our lives really do matter to God. 

 

As we step back into the busyness of life, my encouragement to you isn’t to despise the normality but rather look for opportunities for God to use your everyday life for his amazing purposes. Look for the conversations, look for the acts of kindness, look for the chances to show grace. Let’s not always look for the mountain-top faith building moments this September, rather let’s serve God joyfully and make the daily decision to be used for his purposes. 

 

Isn’t that exciting?