Day by Day

Called To Follow

It is our nature to do or own thing, to lean to our own understanding, to search for our destiny, to chart our own course in life and stick to our plan with steadfastness and determination.

We strive to be sharp, relevant, the best and the brightest so that we can become people of success and influence. We are taught from the time that we are children to be leaders and never followers.

A relationship with Jesus Christ on the other hand, calls us to be his followers before we can be effective leaders.A relationship with Jesus Christ calls us to redirect our attention from our own selfish ambitions toward a life that seeks God’s guidance.

Henry Nouwen in the book, In The Name of Jesus, suggests that our vocational goals as followers of Christ must be to become irrelevant.

How do we unlearn what has become so deeply ingrained in us, when all of societies unavoidable messages are designed to reach us at our point of insecurity and vulnerability.

We all want to prove that we are good enough, smart enough, strong enough, and rich enough. We are willing to do almost anything to belong to exclusive groups.

Being a member of the body of Christ is an exclusive group with many rights and privileges.Being a member of the body of Christ invites us to be counter culture.As we pray daily for the strength to live as persons who are in the world but not of it, our relationship with God becomes more than twice a week visitation privileges

Through prayer and surrender, we begin to internalize the teachings and the “way” of Jesus. As we reflect upon the messages of the Bible, we become more and more aware of a better way for us to live.God’s plan for our lives relieves us from competition, selfishness, frenzy and fear.

God’s way invites us to let go of the snares that distract us from the rewards of true freedom and peace that we can know only through Christ.

A New Pace

What a summer this has been. Returning to my birth city to care for my aging parents has been a lot more than I imagined it to be. I have been chairing committees, pasturing a congregation and traveling across the country training leaders for over eight years now, and that fast paced lifestyle had become quite a fulfilling way of life for me.

These days however, I find myself sitting at home with my disabled grandparents and trying desperately to find pleasure in our conversations about fresh vegetables and the good old times. I am working on a part time basis now and every fiber of my being is pulling at me to be more productive and to accomplish something spectacular. It has been difficult for me to slow my mind down long enough to patiently and lovingly hear the end of one of their twice told stories

To add to my dilemma, housing here in Maryland is so expensive; that I might have to live with my retired Godmother a lot longer than I had planned. My original plan was to take 6 months to spend some quality time with my family, finish school and think critically about the next phase of my life. While I really want to embrace these sacred days, I honestly don’t know if I will be able to be still for the entire 6 months without taking on more work. Thank God for the Baltimore Presbytery. They have graciously offered me office space twice a week.

When I accepted a call to serve as national staff in Louisville 11 years ago, I prayed for the opportunity to be available to my family when they really needed me. Since I have been away, both my sister and brother have died. That leaves me to care for the aging members of my family and to provide support for the next generation of nieces and nephews.

I am reminded as I surrender more and more to the stillness that God is calling me to, that more quality time with family and friends, more time alone with God, more time to read the Bible and other books without preparing for a workshop or a sermon, the sounds of nature and the view of the sun setting over the Chesapeake Bay, are the very things that my soul has longed for.

I keep reminding myself that this is a sacred season and that seasons change so quickly. This one might not even last for 4 more months. As I live within the tension of who I have become over the past 11 years and how God is transforming me, I am being given the opportunity to rediscover myself outside of what I do and how others perceive me.

Now that I am experiencing the presence of God on the other side of the pulpit, and on the ends of the table instead of at the head, I am rediscovering a part of myself that will not only be able to preach, teach and provide training sessions on spiritual leadership but also model it. Join me each week as I courageously share my day-by-day journey to the place where God is leading me.

Where is God leading you on your spiritual journey? Please consider sharing your inspiring story.