summer vacation

I didn't grow up "going on vacation." Did you?

"Vacation" wasn't a household word during my upbringing, but it sure is for my kids! Little did I know, when I got married, that I would become a beneficiary of many extra worldly blessings. Reminds me that when you enter the family of God, you reap far more spiritual blessings than you could ever imagine. 

Just about every summer we join my mother-in-law for a family vacation at the same spot in Arizona. My kids know what family vacation means. It means stepping away from the normal routine, our home life, our friend groups, and dad from work (kind of; he always has something he must tend to remotely). It means every day feels like Saturday. 

Each time we return to this desert oasis, I marvel at the regularity, establishment, and continuation of such a place that offers earthly rest and peace. It is not something we earned at all. It's a blessing passed down from generations before who invested and prepared, who valued certain traditions and a way of life. I know that it is a special thing to follow after wise men and women. That type doesn't live simply for themselves. They live to give to others, to their children, and to their communities. 

Old Testament patriarchs were big on passing down spiritual and financial blessings. We see it underscored in the stories of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, David, and Moses- the fatherly figure to an entire nation. The latter was a spokesman for Israel's Heavenly Father Who desired to bless them above all nations on the face of the earth. Moses reminded them of the mighty works God did to bring them out of bondage, feeding them in the wilderness, "that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end." But in the same breath, Moses warned them of pride: "And thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth. But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God" Deuteronomy 8:16-18 

I don't mind or really need to compare my childhood with that of my children. God placed me and them exactly in the family He deemed best. All are imperfect and flawed in many ways, yes, but they are families with a rich heritage of faith established in love. So whether vacation means something in your household or not, I pray you and your children value the things that are most important in this life.