Progress Report

Dear Friends in Christ -

It's been a month now since I returned from the "preaching camp" experience where I heard God's call (again) to put first things first. That means putting my connection with God first: literally and figuratively at the beginning of my day.

I've been trying to think of a name for this time that is set aside for praying and studying and writing. The name I've come to is "great work," a name that expresses both the wonder and the difficulty of the opening of the soul.

I had to make a mid-course correction in the middle of the month. After two weeks of setting aside time five days a week for "great work," I felt restless. I wasn't quite getting to the bottom of things, so I started setting aside time seven days a week.

The impact of this deeper connection with God has been profound. I feel better - body, mind and spirit - than I have in years. I feel clearer and happier and more present. My writing process is more enjoyable. And the fragrance of the blooming in my interior garden is beginning to flow out into my family life and into my work (sermons, etc.).

This whole process is not without tensions, though. I've basically doubled my prayer/study/writing time, which means that I'm not doing some things that I used to do. A look at my in-box provides ample evidence of what's not getting done. As does a look through my house. A bit of a mess.

I'm a pretty tidy person. I don't really like mess. But I'm striving to live in the center of God's will for me. Since I'm finite, that means giving up less important things so that I can focus on the more important things. Notice I didn't say giving up "unimportant" things. I don't consider the things that were filling my time "unimportant" - just less important than the most important things. Does that make sense?

What this means, of course, is that I've got some cleaning up to do. Some simplifying, some streamlining. At work, this means delegating some things and saying "no" to others. At home, it means planning ahead (unplanned things usually cost more money and energy) and simplifying (getting rid of unnecessary stuff - tripping over it and maintaining it consumes time I need for "great work").

Is this process easy? No. Am I self-conscious about things misplaced, disheveled, undone in the process? You bet. But I have confidence that, if I stick with it, "great work" will overflow into "great Life," for me and for those around me.

Here's to "great Life" for all of us!
Blessings,
Janet+