Fade resistant

The end of summer is almost here. Next month, we’ll be vacuuming sand out of our cars, throwing away broken pool toys, and wondering where the summer went. But for a lot of the children, students, and Next Generation servants at Covenant, they get to take their summer with them.

In June, we had a team of students and adults who returned to the Dominican Republic to provide medical assistance and children’s ministry, while helping to move our facilities in the DR forward. During the first part of July, Covenant Student Ministries also had two student teams reach out to the Appalachian community of Milligan, Tennessee, by restoring the outside of a home while allowing God to deepen their relationship with Him. And during the second part of July, the adult and student servants of Covenant Children’s Ministries joined together to provide a Vacation Bible School that convinced children that God’s word is true, surprising, and comforting.

When it’s all said and done, many of our summer memories will fade like the t-shirts we bought at the beach. But what doesn’t fade is the shift that happens in the kingdom of God when people lean in and reach out to others. It’s during those times when God reveals a side of His nature to us in a way that never fades or is forgotten.

In the book of James, God reminds us how temporal summer vacation is in a culture that constantly keeps saying, “man these years sure do go by fast.”

“How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone.” James 4:14 NLT

If you feel like life is going by too fast and you have little to show for it, watch for the next opportunity where you can lean in and reach out to someone through an outreach ministry at Covenant. If you do, God may give you something that will not fade, can’t be vacuumed up, or refuses to be thrown out.

Joe Cox
Director of Next Generation Ministries
Executive Director of Ministry