I know that a lot of people don’t care for Mondays. Returning to the grind of work after a full weekend of excitement, entertainment and/or relaxation can seem pretty discouraging and certainly anticlimactic. As a pastor, I keep a different schedule than most people. I even keep a different schedule than most pastors. Originally I took Mondays off but I found that my emotional exhaustion from Sunday wrecked me and I would only feel like lying around the house all day…not a very productive day off. So now I go into the office on Mondays and I use that day to take care of a lot of my paperwork, administrative and other non-intellectual tasks that need attention. I also use that day to work on church projects…namely yard and facility work.
My wife and others have told me repeatedly that I shouldn’t be spending my time on yard and facility work. Not because those things are below me but because there are so many other things that I should be focusing on. The argument could probably be made that I should be delegating some of these tasks. There is some wisdom in that but what I have working against me is that there is something in my wiring that compels me to focus energy on these areas. The reason is simple enough--seeing things broken, unkempt, or in a general state of disrepair drives me crazy.
Once something starts bothering me or has distracted me…it will continue to bother and distract me until it is addressed. I don’t think that is an entirely bad thing in that eventually those things will finally get done even if it did take away attention from something else that I should be doing. I like the sense of accomplishment and being able to check something off of my mental list.
I was raised with the notion of treating the church building with holy reverence. This would include not running in the building, keeping your feet off the pew in front of you, speaking in hushed voices, and you would NEVER get up to go to the bathroom while the pastor was speaking…as well as contributing to the upkeep and cleanliness of the building itself. The wrath of mom and dad were never far off and I learned the ropes early on. Those things have kind of stayed with me through the years and are probably the last and most difficult to drop vestiges of church protocol that I learned.
If only I had the same anal retentive personality when it came to Christ’s temple—me. The passage in 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 says that each of us is God’s temple: body, mind, and spirit. I recognize that I don’t seem to be nearly as meticulous and uptight about the upkeep and maintenance of this temple. How am I treating my body? Ouch. What am I feeding my mind? Hmmm. What am I allowing my spirit to be influenced by? God forgive me. Today I purpose to view this temple as sacred because what is sacred to God had better be sacred to me.
My wife and others have told me repeatedly that I shouldn’t be spending my time on yard and facility work. Not because those things are below me but because there are so many other things that I should be focusing on. The argument could probably be made that I should be delegating some of these tasks. There is some wisdom in that but what I have working against me is that there is something in my wiring that compels me to focus energy on these areas. The reason is simple enough--seeing things broken, unkempt, or in a general state of disrepair drives me crazy.
Once something starts bothering me or has distracted me…it will continue to bother and distract me until it is addressed. I don’t think that is an entirely bad thing in that eventually those things will finally get done even if it did take away attention from something else that I should be doing. I like the sense of accomplishment and being able to check something off of my mental list.
I was raised with the notion of treating the church building with holy reverence. This would include not running in the building, keeping your feet off the pew in front of you, speaking in hushed voices, and you would NEVER get up to go to the bathroom while the pastor was speaking…as well as contributing to the upkeep and cleanliness of the building itself. The wrath of mom and dad were never far off and I learned the ropes early on. Those things have kind of stayed with me through the years and are probably the last and most difficult to drop vestiges of church protocol that I learned.
If only I had the same anal retentive personality when it came to Christ’s temple—me. The passage in 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 says that each of us is God’s temple: body, mind, and spirit. I recognize that I don’t seem to be nearly as meticulous and uptight about the upkeep and maintenance of this temple. How am I treating my body? Ouch. What am I feeding my mind? Hmmm. What am I allowing my spirit to be influenced by? God forgive me. Today I purpose to view this temple as sacred because what is sacred to God had better be sacred to me.
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