“For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.”

We are just a few days away from August, which gets called the the “dog days of summer”. This old adage refers to those hot, steamy, sweltering days when even the dogs don’t do anything but lie on the floor or in the shade looking for rest and cool. We aren’t really that different as the summer months trigger vacation time and for lots of companies, downtime. Morale in the summer is sometimes hard to measure as people’s minds are in so many different places that getting focused on the business at hand becomes hard. In Europe, many companies shut down for the month of August knowing that they are pushing water uphill for productivity. Keeping momentum is hard for a business. One rough quarter or even a bad product review or customer complaint can stall or divert momentum. This is why it is so important for businesses to have a longer-term compelling and exciting vision that aligns everyone and keeps the momentum going, even when things slow down. Without this, we are vulnerable to any which thing that comes along and distracts us or looks at all to be negative.

The same can be said in our own lives. God expects us to lean on Him and plow through the difficulties of life. Like a business that doesn’t have a vision or strategy, the same can happen to us if we don’t have our focus in the right place. What God does for us is to give us Him as a place to firmly fix our gaze and then allow ourselves to be pulled up and over the mountains of life. Paul tells us that we have all the desire and power we need to do those things that are pleasing to God. All we have to do is allow Him to continue to work within us and to tap into that unlimited reserve that builds momentum for us. Clearly, it is up to us to allow God into our lives, but what a blessing to have Him there for us at all times.

Reference: Philippians 2:13 (New Living Testament)