Summer!

Here we are!  It is summer once again.  The longest day of the year just came and went but the beat goes on.  Even though the days will get progressively shorter...each day holds a new promise.

You may know folks who do not see a fresh 24 hour framework as a new promise or as an unrevealed experience of hope.  In moments of confession, I would have to say that I see most days as hopeful but there are those days...you know those days...when things tend to look a bit darker on the horizon. 

Every time those dark clouds seem to settle in on my soul...it seems that God uses the same strategy to get my attention and to turn my head.  It always seems to come in the form of the Sermon on the Mount.  You know the one.  Jesus gathers his disciples on a hillside.  The crowds are close enough to overhear the conversation.  He begins to teach and the world begins to change.

From time to time, my world needs to change.  Maybe I should say my worldview needs to change.  Because, in the end, it is all about how we see the rest of the world.  Let me suggest that the lens of Matthew 5-7 is a wonderful way to readjust your point of view.

May this day...and all days to come...be lived on that hillside within earshot of the Good Shepherd.