Just thought I'd process a few retreat thoughts.
It'd be so much easier to stop growing and stay the same :) Growth = Complication. But it's a good complication. The reward in the parable of the talents wasn't an early retirement or extended vacation. The reward for good work was more work :) The faithful servant had more to manage.
The coffeehouse complicates our lives. Adding new locations complicates our lives. Adding new staff and new retreats and new outreaches and new leaders complicates our lives.
So thank God for complications :)
I definitely felt a little overwhelmed on our retreat. But Nina Schmidgall, our children's coordinator, helped me get a handle on it. She likened it to the first day of school when you get all of your class syllabi :) You feel the cumulative pressure of everything you have to do :) That analogy really helped me process the way I'm feeling. It's normal to feel overwhelmed when you thinking about everything you want to happen in the next year. When you add up the decisions to be made and things to be done it equals overwhelmed! It reminds me of the passage in I Corinthians where Paul asks the question: "Who is equal to such a task?" I know I'm nothing without God's anointing. And I'm grateful for an incredibly talented and committed team.
As the Lead Pastor of National Community Church, I feel the cumulative responsibility for everyone and everything that happens at NCC. Sometimes it feels like an awfully big load. I honestly wouldn't want it any other way :) But I think I'm a little low on margin and high on dreams right now :)
Having said that, I'm totally excited about next year. John 1:50 is one of my theme verses. Jesus said, "You will see greater things than this." Jesus was talking to Nathanael, but I think that is true for every follower of Christ.
The best is yet to come.
We haven't see anything yet.
God has bigger and better things in store for us!
A little overwhelmed, but looking forward to 2006 :)
It'd be so much easier to stop growing and stay the same :) Growth = Complication. But it's a good complication. The reward in the parable of the talents wasn't an early retirement or extended vacation. The reward for good work was more work :) The faithful servant had more to manage.
The coffeehouse complicates our lives. Adding new locations complicates our lives. Adding new staff and new retreats and new outreaches and new leaders complicates our lives.
So thank God for complications :)
I definitely felt a little overwhelmed on our retreat. But Nina Schmidgall, our children's coordinator, helped me get a handle on it. She likened it to the first day of school when you get all of your class syllabi :) You feel the cumulative pressure of everything you have to do :) That analogy really helped me process the way I'm feeling. It's normal to feel overwhelmed when you thinking about everything you want to happen in the next year. When you add up the decisions to be made and things to be done it equals overwhelmed! It reminds me of the passage in I Corinthians where Paul asks the question: "Who is equal to such a task?" I know I'm nothing without God's anointing. And I'm grateful for an incredibly talented and committed team.
As the Lead Pastor of National Community Church, I feel the cumulative responsibility for everyone and everything that happens at NCC. Sometimes it feels like an awfully big load. I honestly wouldn't want it any other way :) But I think I'm a little low on margin and high on dreams right now :)
Having said that, I'm totally excited about next year. John 1:50 is one of my theme verses. Jesus said, "You will see greater things than this." Jesus was talking to Nathanael, but I think that is true for every follower of Christ.
The best is yet to come.
We haven't see anything yet.
God has bigger and better things in store for us!
A little overwhelmed, but looking forward to 2006 :)
8 Comments:
Dude, thanks for the reminder from the parable of the talents! Mind if I quote it on my blog?
Go for it :)
Did you all decide where location #4 will be? Or what vote was highest?
Kyle,
Pretty focused on the coffeehouse launch so we didn't spend much time on the next theater location.
Northwest DC was definitely the strongest response and the most probable location, but I've learned to really get a "final sense" from the Holy Spirit. And I don't think we're there yet.
It'll probably be January before we make a final call. But the survey is definitely calling for Northwest DC.
Maybe Maryland will be #5 some day in the future :)
Mark,
Hey dude--good stuff! I love the school analogy! I was just telling a staff member the other day, "It used to be easier than this!" HOWEVER, it is much more fun now than it ever has been! I will make that trade anyday!
To take the analogy a step further...when I would feel overwhelmed in college, a friend used to ask me, "How do you eat an elephant?" I would stare dumfounded. "Bite by bite!" It took me a while to get it but that is how you accomplish a tough task (or many big tasks in your case PMark)...one bite at a time. Even now, I think about that when I am overwhelmed. One bite at a time! (Note: Since elephants just happen to be my favorite animal, please note that this is not to be taken literally. :) -Nina
One bite at a time! LOVE IT!
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