Updates and Requests

Well, I'm trying to become more regular with my blog. I'm actually blogging within a week of my last post. Things are on a roll. Maybe because its because I'm on "vacation". I haven't been in the office regularly this week. I had to pop in on Tuesday to do some work for the weekend, and I've been in a few evenings doing testing for Dave Ramsey's Town Hall. But, for the rest of the time, I've been on "vacation". By vacation, I mean, not working at the office, but working at home.

It's been over a year now that we've owned our house. We're about 2/3 of the way through the renovations. We did good till we moved in back in June. Then we got busy with summer and pretty much quit working on the house. My goal is to have it mostly all done by our 14th wedding anniversary in June. We'll see how it goes. I still have a lot of stuff to do. Recently, the downstairs bathroom has been the focus. I put up the last sheet of drywall tonight. I hope to paint it sometime next week and put in the flooring. Then all that will be left will be trim, installing the vanity, reinstalling the crapper, and putting in a drop ceiling. All in all, it should go quickly, depending on how the big project for this week goes.

On Monday I was hoping to start my roof. Its in really bad shape. However, when I plan to work outside, God decides that we need rain. Tomorrow is Thursday. We're starting tomorrow. Thanks a lot God. My prayer, and hopefully yours too, is that everything goes smoothly in the next couple of days so that by Sunday, we have a new, beautiful roof. Then all that will be left outside is new siding and landscaping. We'll definitely get the landscaping done this year. We'll see about the siding--because when the siding gets replaced, so do the windows.

Outside of church work and house work, my mind has really been chewing on who we are and what we are supposed to be as Christians. All of the thoughts stem from the class, Scripture and Christian Living, that I'm getting to teach at GLCC this semester. Its really made me think hard about what it is I do and why I do it.

I've been at South now for about 8 1/2 years. I think I've done ok ministry. I'm sure I could have done better ministry in that time, had certain cards played out. I've really had an effect on the lives of the students that were in my youth ministry at the start. Many of them have gone into ministry or are working towards that goal. That excites me and helps me to know I did something good. But, at the same time, I wonder what else I could have done? Since I can't change things, my mind quickly goes to what I should be doing now. How should I be doing ministry to really affect change in the lives of those I'm ministering to right now. How do I push us farther into being who God wants us to be? What does that even look like?

The challenging and sobering thing is, what I think that looks like (what we are supposed to be) is not something I have aimed for in the last few years. Rather, I've focused on what I need to get done for my job and that is that. I don't know that I've fully had a ministry mind. I mean, its there and that's why I do what I do. Yet, I'm not continually asking the question, where do we need to go and how do we get there? Normally, the questions of the day are what do I need to get done this week, and how do I get it done in the time I have?

My prayer is that all this reflecting and chewing, the study for class, and the subsequent discussions with some of my students (and the voices in my head), will challenge me to rethink who I am, what I am doing with my life, and what I should be doing for others under the reign of God. I'm curious to know what you might think those things might be--what they look like and how they get played out. Please feel free to comment below!