God is Rockin’ My World

I need to be writing more. I know. Writing helps me to think clearly as I go through my day. I’ve made the choice that I will simplify where possible and ease stress in my life. My chest started hurting the other day as I was in the midst of something and I think my heart was saying “slow down” again! Time to reduce, time to simplify. To wit:

1. I’ve been gradually getting rid of my excess stuff on Craig’s List or Freecycle. I’m clearing out old books, excess computer stuff I no longer use but hung onto “just in case”, and I’m selling a lot of my prized book “sets” I used to use for sermon prep. Much of it I get online now and I’m planning in a ten year window so my wife and I can settle into a town home at some point with very little “stuff”. The money I’ve made selling all of this old stuff is being put back for a potential purchase of an Amazon Kindle reader. Then, I can get rid of more books as I purchase the ones I really want to keep for the kindle.

2. I got frustrated with my razor and threw it out. I’m so tired of “four blades, five blades, battery powered, etc…” The ads were killing me. I found my old twin blade “Atra” razor handle I used to use in the 80’s and guess what? My local K-Mart still stocks the blades for it. They are a lot cheaper too and the shave is still the same. Nobody at church has noticed that my face isn’t cleaner because I pared two blades from the cartridge and no longer need triple “A” batteries to make it shave even closer.

3. My wife’s brother died Saturday at age 43. It kinda put the whole salad of life into perspective. Especially as I watch her pack as I write this. Our church will continue long after God tells me I’m done. I tend to get quite forward focused and there’s nothing wrong with that but when it becomes my primary life force, I’m through. God let me know that Saturday. The church isn’t God. My relationship with God isn’t through the church, it’s merely strengthened there as I meet with other travelers on the journey and, as pastor, help them when they fall. I’m still driven to see the church be all that God wants it to be but even he (God) let me know that if I focus ONLY on that at the expense of other things, he will not bless it.

4. I’m through thinking that these church “conferences” are the end all they are marketed to be. With names like “Cut Loose”, “Roar Forward”, “Intensify” and other powerful sounding words like that, they are little more than time intensive, expensive, get aways. (Yes, yes, I made up the names so please don’t Google them looking for them…you know the ones I mean). I mean no disrespect to the guys planning them but as I’ve stated before, We should be able to get the same refreshment on the local level through a local conference. My worship guy and I are going to a similar type event that will be a half-day Saturday experience at my friend’s local Four-Square church. Lunch is included and I have my evening to go over my sermon. I don’t have the time, nor the money, to travel across the country for these events and in reality, the context of their ministry doesn’t necessarily fit mine. Are there things there that could potentially benefit us? Sure, but I should be able to get the same nuggets of wisdom by purchasing a DVD at a reasonable price. Truly, out of all of these that I’ve seen, the only cost effective seminar that has the church planter’s context in mind is the HUMANA event put on by Alex McManus (Erwin’s brother). I really don’t need someone else to “rock my world” as I’ve read many times. God is doing a good enough job of that as I submit to him in my daily devotions.

Perhaps I’ll write more but for now, that’s enough.