It may not be complete with rocking chairs, sunflowers in pretty vases, and ice cold sweet tea, but we all have our own version of a “front porch”. Our own front porches are those places that we grew up enjoying and making memories, they’re the places where we can allow ourselves to sit and take a deep breath. Our own front porches are places where we allow ourselves to slow down and meet with God, and it’s that place we often go back to when we need direction or clarity.
Even Jesus seemed to have his own front porch. Mark 1:35 says, "Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed." A front porch can simply be a state of mind, a special place, or a time of day. It's a place you can get away, and fellowship with your Maker.
Even Jesus seemed to have his own front porch. Mark 1:35 says, "Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed." A front porch can simply be a state of mind, a special place, or a time of day. It's a place you can get away, and fellowship with your Maker.
For me, the lake is my front porch. My grandparents have a lake house, and I grew up spending my summers on the water. I have countless memories of waterskiing, wakeboarding, and tubing with my sisters and cousins. We had too many fish fries and shrimp boils to count, more injuries from playing too hard than I care to admit, and I could talk for hours about all the silly memories and hilarious stories that happened during my times there.
Looking back, I now realize a bigger purpose in my fun lake experience. Over time, being at the lake became my get away, my chance to slow down and process life and let everything else fade for a time. It is a place where I automatically let go of the everyday hustle and allow the Lord to rejuvenate and replenish me. The lake also gives me a chance to be with family and friends and realize the value and importance of relationships and being present in conversation.
Beyond that, being at the lake gives me a chance to be outdoors and see our Creator and the life He is constantly giving. It helps me see creation in a new way. Most of all, I realized that the lake had become my safe place, my place to come and allow the Lord to fill me up so I can be sent back out.
This appreciation of the lake has carried over into other areas of my life. When I get overwhelmed, or if I’m too busy, I often realize I need to just get outdoors and go for a hike or a run to just get away with my Heavenly Father. This resets my body and mind and gives me proper perspective, and it all goes back to my times as a kid being outdoors at the lake.
Over the summer, I traveled to the Canadian Rockies and visited the many lakes it has to offer. As I was peering off into one of these beautiful lakes that look quite different than the lake I grew up on in Tennessee, something hit me: no matter where I am or what lake it is, there’s a sense of peace and calm that rushes over me while I cast my gaze onto the water. In that moment, I realized that this peace wasn’t just because I grew up on the lake and have fond memories of it, but it was because I learned how to rest in God there. Just by showing me the lake, He reminded me that He is my place of serenity, and He reminded me of how He has used the lake as my place to meet Him and refocus my wonder on who He is and what He’s created. Only God can take our front porches...or favorite lakes, and make them transcendent. Because the beautiful thing is, God will meet us anywhere, but He has always been faithful to use the lake to remind me of that truth.
We here at The Front Porch hope that this website will be one of those transcendent places for you, we are striving to be a community of believers ready to spur each other on and work together to go deeper with Christ. Whether you’ve been with us since the beginning or this is the first post you have ever read, we are glad you’re here and hope you find a home with us.
So where is your front porch? Where do you go for peace and calm? Where has God spoken to you most often or shaped you most deeply? When’s the last time you visited your front porch and found rest?
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