The Midsummer Month

25 May 2024 • Articles

June must be the most beautiful month of the year. Neither cold nor too hot, usually fairly dry, with blue skies and a few white clouds. There may be some blossom left on the fruit trees, and the summer flowers are beginning to bloom. In June it is easy to look at the world and see God's work.

Other countries are not always so fortunate, though. In some places, the summer brings too much humidity, or drought, or heavy storms and floods. Or there can be unpredictable events such as earthquakes or floods, leaving huge numbers of people homeless or bereaved. It is understandable that the question is asked, "Where is God ?"

God is full of love. The beautiful things of the world are God's generous gifts to us, but God does not bring us the tragedies and disasters. Some are the result of the way human beings have mistreated the world; others are caused by the way this physical world was formed and our human insistence on living in places which we know to be dangerous.

But God lives in each of these places, too, and God's heart of love grieves every time we suffer. Our heavenly Father is full of compassion, and he is there with us in whatever is happening. His Son Jesus Christ has experienced all our joys and sorrows, and has triumphed over death, taking our human lives into the eternal life of God's heavenly kingdom. The Holy Spirit is with us to guide us with the wisdom of God and to console us with God's love.

Enjoy the beautiful month of June, with its long evenings and its promise of more summer to come, and give thanks for all the good things in God's world.

Ann