The summer season at Council Road is one of my favorite times of year! My kids are out of school and can join me in my office, we have sweet interns that we get to pour into, and there is always something exciting being planned. There is less consistency with meetings and everyone learns a new level of flexibility. We are all being pulled in different directions with our various ministries and we all get to cheer one another on!
I’m very grateful that I was able to go to Falls Creek as well as Super Summer this year. Camp is an experience like no other, being able to get away for a week with your friends and be with God is something so good for your spiritual health! The Lord showed me so many things these past two weeks at camp!
If you’ve ever stepped off that last camp bus, sunburned, sleep-deprived, and full of lukewarm coffee and pizza, you know that church camp doesn’t just leave you tired—it leaves you changed. Not always in the loud music, baptism-in-the-creek, mountaintop kind of way. Sometimes it’s quieter than that, but real change is almost always there. You see it when a teenager raises their hands in worship for the first time, when a mentor prays over a bunk bed, when a mom kneels in the kitchen and prays for her child hours away, or when a minister drags himself out of bed for the fifteenth day in a row to preach to tired teenagers who just want to be on their phones.
Ah! The fabulous days of summer are upon us again! If you have been at Council Road very long at all, you know that all things for kids and youth are geared up and ready to happen. From a popsicle fest to the really big Magnified Vacation Bible School and Kidventure week for kids, to Super Summer and Falls Creek for Youth, our focus is on making great things happen in ministry for these age groups.
How is it June already? Summer has officially arrived and there are so many fun things to do here in the Oklahoma City area! For me, summer has always been a time of finding ways to make memories with family and friends. I hope that you, too, will take time to enjoy the community around you and the fun that Oklahoma City has to offer this summer? The first thing I will always recommend is a good coffee shop! So, here are a few of my favorites.
Summer is a complicated season. I long for it to arrive and then I am ready for it to move on out. I welcome the slow mornings and sweet summer evenings; it’s the in-between part of the day (yes, the bulk of the day) that can be a struggle. If you are like me, the idea of outings to public places with your young kids is a bit overwhelming and, honestly, could go really well or be a total disaster. I am in a season where man on man defense is preferred and often required for outings to be enjoyable. If you are familiar with my family dynamic, you know that I am incredibly outnumbered at home. All that to say, I have to get creative! I have come up with some fun ideas for slowing things down at home, saving money, and keeping the day moving.
Summertime marks the time of year where we prefer to turn off our ovens and fire up the grill. Fresh vegetables and fruits abound, allowing us to savor them in their raw state or perhaps cooked over an open flame. It’s a no fuss season when it comes to cooking or meal planning, and we certainly prefer for our protein to be just as simple and flavorful as the produce we are enjoying.
Summertime! School is out! Camps! Pool parties! Vacations! But the flip side of all this fun? Your rhythms of friendship and community are disrupted. Whether you need a change from your school year commitments or need an on-ramp to community, Book Clubs are a great opportunity in the intermediate months full of sun.
