Now What?

Here we are. Not much has changed. School ended without any fanfare. We held our breath, waiting for the end of "Zoom Gloom," monitoring online assignments, managing the very fickle AP testing system, seeing our college freshman wrap up her first year. The celebration of finally being done was quickly replaced by, "now what?"

We're blessed to live in a state that is opening up faster than many others. Our pool and gym will be up and running tomorrow. Our church—thank God!—is back to worshiping together. I'm teaching Bible study again. But camps and trips and VBS—all the stuff of summer—are still uncertain.

Lost souls always look for light. Now more than ever, it's important to remember the things that light us up and keep us moving forward. Those pursuits we get lost in, when time just rolls by unnoticed.

For me it's mainly writing and running. But spending time in the Word and teaching Bible studies are right up there too. They're the things that are keeping me anchored in the very choppy waters we're living in right now.

This morning's Wall Street Journal had a great piece found in the papers of a former Navy man who was searching for his path in the Depression era. "The future was bleak, the present unbearable. Where could I go?" He found his North Star in the Navy: "the darkness lifted, the light shone, and my way was lighted. My life would have meaning: I would be serving my country."

The path to purpose is almost always through serving. As a Christian, my service is first and foremost to my Lord. But there are plenty of others I can serve this season to give these long days meaning: my family, my church, my friends, my neighbors...

If you're asking yourself "now what?" as the days of this strange summer begin, find out what lights you up and use it to serve your slice of the world "for such a time as this."