Yesterday I had a big disappointment. For some weeks I have been considering a five day leadership course in November organised by the Toronto Airport Christian Fellowship. Although I don’t see myself as part of the charismatic movement, I have some sympathy with it and have been in enough ‘charismatic’ meetings to feel comfortable with the general ethos and atmosphere. In any case, going to something outside my usual experience might be just the thing to give me spiritual inspiration. Also, the course is being promoted through Methodist channels so I wouldn’t be an outsider. And the clinching factor is that my recent rewarding experiences with Street Pastor training (see earlier blogs here and here) came from the same school of thought.
So I’ve been looking forward to this course right up to the point where I sat down to book a place. Then I discovered it clashes with certain family arrangements which mean it will be a bad time to be away from home.
In coming to terms with my disappointment my first thought was this. “Lord, how can you dangle in front of me some encouraging, challenging and uplifting experience and then whisk it away? You’d better have something even better in mind!”
My later thoughts were, “Lord, are you trying to tell me that I shouldn’t be pinning my hopes on some conference as the solution to all my problems? Perhaps I shouldn’t be waiting until November to sort out my spiritual malaise but discovering a renewed sense of love for God here and now.”
So I’m pretty much over my disappointment by today. (One advantage with not being a deeply emotional person – I don’t sink too deep and bob back to the surface fairly quickly.) Instead I am beginning to feel new anticipation. Either God is throwing me back on my own resources to pull my socks up and make a go of life. Or God has something planned which will be even better than the course I can’t attend. Or both. Watch this space.
Friday 30 May 2008
Friday 23 May 2008
Work smarter not harder - but how?
I am not getting things done as well as I should. My life and work seem to be spiralling out of control. I realise I need to do things differently, but how?
Sharpening the axe. I’m a great believer in giving time to ‘preparing the tools’. If I commit time to creating a well-ordered work place with a tidily categorised list of tasks, then I feel better in myself, I work better and I get the jobs done in less time overall than if I just pitch into the chaos and thrash around. The trouble is that in recent weeks the influx of email and post have created so much clutter that I am spending many hours sharpening the axe without even getting it really sharp, let alone using it to chop trees.
Focusing on the important rather than the urgent. I know the principle. Those things which are important, but have no clear deadlines – they don’t actually need to be done today, or even this week – ought to have priority. But when it comes to a choice between preparing tonight’s meeting or visiting someone who could be visited another day, it is usually the urgent task that gets the priority. I am already going into meetings, or even services, feeling that I am under-prepared. If I cut down on preparation time in favour of more important (but less urgent) activities, then I will end up winging it in meetings even more than I do now.
Avoiding time-wasting leisure. I know there is a proper place for relaxation and personal refreshment in anybody’s life, and that constant work can be counterproductive if it leads to stress, ill health and early ‘burn out’. But I could easily add an hour or two here and there to my working life if I cut down on certain distractions. This may not be a complete solution to my problems, but it would reduce the sense of guilt. I would avoid the current situation where I feel that one wasted hour is to blame for not fulfilling all my tasks, when actually I would have needed many additional hours to complete them.
Prayer and spiritual nourishment. Again I know the principle – the more one has to accomplish, the more one has to pray. The reality is that I have been ‘too busy’ for some weeks to devote any serious time to prayer – though I have not been too busy for lots of other less important matters.
So what’s the answer? Probably the simplest approach is the best – decide at any given moment what is the most important thing to be doing and then do it. It’s a good principle. I just need the mental discipline to follow it. Which means the most important thing right now is to pray...
Sharpening the axe. I’m a great believer in giving time to ‘preparing the tools’. If I commit time to creating a well-ordered work place with a tidily categorised list of tasks, then I feel better in myself, I work better and I get the jobs done in less time overall than if I just pitch into the chaos and thrash around. The trouble is that in recent weeks the influx of email and post have created so much clutter that I am spending many hours sharpening the axe without even getting it really sharp, let alone using it to chop trees.
Focusing on the important rather than the urgent. I know the principle. Those things which are important, but have no clear deadlines – they don’t actually need to be done today, or even this week – ought to have priority. But when it comes to a choice between preparing tonight’s meeting or visiting someone who could be visited another day, it is usually the urgent task that gets the priority. I am already going into meetings, or even services, feeling that I am under-prepared. If I cut down on preparation time in favour of more important (but less urgent) activities, then I will end up winging it in meetings even more than I do now.
Avoiding time-wasting leisure. I know there is a proper place for relaxation and personal refreshment in anybody’s life, and that constant work can be counterproductive if it leads to stress, ill health and early ‘burn out’. But I could easily add an hour or two here and there to my working life if I cut down on certain distractions. This may not be a complete solution to my problems, but it would reduce the sense of guilt. I would avoid the current situation where I feel that one wasted hour is to blame for not fulfilling all my tasks, when actually I would have needed many additional hours to complete them.
Prayer and spiritual nourishment. Again I know the principle – the more one has to accomplish, the more one has to pray. The reality is that I have been ‘too busy’ for some weeks to devote any serious time to prayer – though I have not been too busy for lots of other less important matters.
So what’s the answer? Probably the simplest approach is the best – decide at any given moment what is the most important thing to be doing and then do it. It’s a good principle. I just need the mental discipline to follow it. Which means the most important thing right now is to pray...
Friday 2 May 2008
Pausing to admire the view
We returned yesterday from a four day break visiting our son in Macclesfield. During this visit we walked up some steep hills and enjoyed some spectacular views. A few of these great views were when we paused to rest, and instead of looking at the ascent still ahead of us we turned and appreciated how far we had already climbed.
So, not having blogged for a while, it's time for a brief pause to admire the big picture, and it's generally positive. I've been in good health for a long time now, though my weight this morning is vastly more than I'd like it to be - in fact I can't offhand remember being any heavier than I am now. Family relationships continue to be good - any disagreements are over minor issues, which I reckon must indicate a generally contented family. I've produced a few stirring sermons (according to feedback afterwards) alongside the run-of-the-mill (and the not-really-up-to-scratch) stuff. There is a groundswell of enthusiasm in the church to do something dramatic with our children and young people. I've been keeping on top of admin, though not enough to clear my backlog of tasks, or to be very proactive in important matters.
Spiritually (and this is supposed to be a spiritual journal), I've been barely ticking along. I'm probably too content with my lot. There's no pressure to launch out in faith. I've got enough knowledge and experience to do all the spiritual things ministers are supposed to do - preach, lead in prayer, explain the Bible, support the faithful - but I don't find myself driven to my knees in desperate intercessory prayer; I don't go rushing eagerly to the Bible in anticipation of an encounter with God; I don't put my every waking effort into bringing the kingdom of God into my local community.
In spiritual terms, there's not much of a view behind me. I have a lot further to climb first. Today I need to diverge from the easy level path and put in some effort to heading upwards.
So, not having blogged for a while, it's time for a brief pause to admire the big picture, and it's generally positive. I've been in good health for a long time now, though my weight this morning is vastly more than I'd like it to be - in fact I can't offhand remember being any heavier than I am now. Family relationships continue to be good - any disagreements are over minor issues, which I reckon must indicate a generally contented family. I've produced a few stirring sermons (according to feedback afterwards) alongside the run-of-the-mill (and the not-really-up-to-scratch) stuff. There is a groundswell of enthusiasm in the church to do something dramatic with our children and young people. I've been keeping on top of admin, though not enough to clear my backlog of tasks, or to be very proactive in important matters.
Spiritually (and this is supposed to be a spiritual journal), I've been barely ticking along. I'm probably too content with my lot. There's no pressure to launch out in faith. I've got enough knowledge and experience to do all the spiritual things ministers are supposed to do - preach, lead in prayer, explain the Bible, support the faithful - but I don't find myself driven to my knees in desperate intercessory prayer; I don't go rushing eagerly to the Bible in anticipation of an encounter with God; I don't put my every waking effort into bringing the kingdom of God into my local community.
In spiritual terms, there's not much of a view behind me. I have a lot further to climb first. Today I need to diverge from the easy level path and put in some effort to heading upwards.
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