The heat of summer reminds us all to do the things that refresh us. There’s nothing quite like the taste of watermelon in July or finding shade under a wide-reaching tree. We begin to look forward to the rain. These are the things that refresh our bodies but what about our souls?

Always remember to do the things that refresh your soul. The heat of life burns all seasons of the year. That will never change; so long as we are human we will be constantly met with adversary, hardships, annoyances, grief. We must be intentional about discovering the things that nourish our souls. What soothes you? What brings you back to life?

Those things that are best for us aren’t always the easiest things. When you are feeling low, sometimes it takes a lot of effort and energy to pull yourself up and take care of your soul. The truth is though, no one else is going to do it for us.

A couple of weeks ago, my power went out for two days. (I know, first world problem, right?) But let me tell you, I was miserable. I cannot stand to be hot! The last thing I wanted to do when I woke up dripping in sweat was go worship, pray, and tell God all the things I was grateful for. But (after much debating with myself) that’s exactly what I did.

By the end of the day, my power was back on. Now I can’t say whether or not that was due to prayer, but what I can say is this: praying was what kept me sane in the mean time. Sometimes we can’t change our circumstances, and sometimes changing our circumstances isn’t the answer in the first place. Sometimes we just need the peace to be able to sustain ourselves in those circumstances. Sometimes it’s the heat, the adversary that is teaching us the greatest lessons and making us stronger.

I hope you’re inspired today to quit running away from adversary and instead begin facing the heat head on. We can’t hide from the summer sun; it returns like clockwork, but we can adapt to it, learn from it, change our perspectives. I’ve learned that the summer’s heat isn’t my enemy but in fact a blessing. It’s through trials and adversary we are moved to seek out the shade and cool waters of our Almighty God.