the morning run...errrr...jog

This morning I was beginning my day as normal and was getting ready to work when Nyla came to me with her puppy dog eyes and began whining. I knew what she was wanting...to go for a run.

In an effort to living more healthily I have started this routine of taking Nyla on a run/walk for 45 min. every day. Sometimes we go in the afternoon, but more often than not we go in the morning. Nyla has become so accustomed to this that if we are not out the door by 9:30am she becomes very insistent and will not leave me alone until either I leave the house, or we go for our run. Today was no different.

And so I donned my sweater jacket and tennies and off we went. I have been pretty faithful to this daily exercise, so I have gotten to the point where I can normally run most of our duration out, to which was my surprise today when I went as normal feeling good, and then *BOOM* I'm breathing heavily and can only force my body to walk. So off and I we would jog and walk, and the normal 45 min. I take for this run was cut to 30 due to what seemed to be my out of shapeness cutting in. About

Nyla being her cute self :)

20 min. in I considered just turning back and going home, but I knew Nyla really wanted to keep going, and I honestly wanted to too, and so against the chilled air and slight pain in my lungs I persevered on to at least 30 min. As I walked home I pondered this and was trying to think of what I have done wrong the past week that got me out of shape so quickly. And then it hit me...

I haven't changed anything. The factor that has changed is the season. It is much colder now than it was even a week ago. When I breathe in this cool air, my lungs are constricted and it's harder to breathe, and when I would run most of the time, I am now walking. That doesn't mean that I will quit running, but what it does mean is that I am going to be more aware of the coming cold and adjust my routine and condition myself in a way that will make it a good exercise and not a horrific experience I force myself to do.

Thinking about all this crossed over as I was praying for WVU and IV. It dawned on me that ministry (and really life) is much like jogging in the changing seasons. Sometimes ministry is going very well and you are feeling great about your leadership abilities and the spirits and dedication of the members (in my case students). And then sometimes an outside force comes along like the cold air and makes it harder to keep the ministry moving along. These are often the times we become discouraged and rethink our entire choice of going into the field we did, and will either blame ourselves, or sometimes the members, when really it is something else completely outside of our control that is hindering us. In our case it was WVU dorm officials saying we can't do small groups in the lounges, not being able to get a room for our weekly meetings, and so we have settled for the Ag. Sci. building on top the hill, new students just not wanting to get involved with IV, and even staff not being able to raise their full support and are unable to spend the time needed on campus.

We may want to give up early and go home, or completely change our career thinking maybe God didn't really want us to take this path...but maybe...just maybe, if we sit back and look and pray, we may see that this is just part of what we have chosen to do! When God brought the Israelites out of Egypt I'm pretty sure there weren't Hyatt hotels and cabana boys/girls serving them sweet tea and cool towels. And look at Jesus...his calling took him to the cross! Sometimes we (myself very much included) need to remember that walking the path Christ has laid for us will not always be an easy road to take. Sometimes there will be hardships and sometimes it will be painful, but if God has brought you there he will not leave you to suffer alone, but rather will help to carry you through to the next level.

When the cold is hurting our lungs, our legs are week from running, and we are doubting everything we have done to that point, we must persevere and keep going!!!

Now part of that is to know when it is ok to take a quick breather and just walk for a little while. Sometimes in ministry we have to do that so our figurative lungs don't explode. It is ok, even as a ministry head, to slow down and walk it out for a while, as long as you're still moving towards the goal God has set for you, don't be afraid to do that. And then once we catch our breath we can pick up our jog once more, but in any case we keep moving forward.

Another thought I had is that not every reason we get tripped up is from an outside force. Somtimes when I walk Nyla she decides it to be a good idea to run into a luscious green space and poo in someone else's yard. In cases like these I have to stop, pull out a bag from my little pack I carry, clean up her mess, find a place to toss it, and then keep going. If I don't do that, I am first of all being very rude and unmindful of those who own the yard, and 2nd if I just keep running I would either have to just drag her along as she tries to go, making her very uncomfortable, or leave her behind, which I'm sure she would just run up to anyone who takes notice of her and go home with them.

Same goes for ministry. Sometimes the problem is inside the group. There is tension over classes or family, someone said something insensitive to another person, someone was unintentionally left out and now there are hurt feelings. Maybe there is a problem with sexual sin and lying in the group, or maybe the group doesn't catch your vision or are doubting your leadership and where you feel God wants to take them. That can be a lot of poo to clean up, but as ministry leaders we must stop, listen, and attempt to clean it up. If we don't do these things then we will either strangle our teams by their "leashes" and make moving forward more difficult for everyone, or we will leave them behind and they will go somewhere where they are felt cared for and heard. We need to be sensitive to our members and what is going on in their lives. We need to care well for them individually and for the group as a whole.

Mosh (Ian) on a telephone poll admiring the sunset in Evansdale

Sometimes that means we have to stop some grand plan of ministry we have set in order to help those who are not on board to get there, or to serve our members well by dealing with whatever issues that has come up. by doing this not only will they be better people and grow, but you will too.

Now as I write this I am very much aware of my own shortcomings and thoughts as a ministry leader. Presently we are dealing with the cold air in IV, but we are moving forward in spite of it. To help catch our breath, this week at our weekly event we had a prayer walk around the Evansdale campus. We split up into 4 or 5 groups and walked all over the grounds praying over buildings, people, and leaders in departments and other ministries. As we looked down from a hill we could see the entire Evansdale campus and much of the Starcity/Suncrest area lit up in the night. We gazed out, took a deep breath, and are begining to jog once more.

I pray the same for you, whether ministry leader, or just citizens of life, that you will be able to take those moments of deepened breaths, or cleaning up messes, and then continue on in your jog, moving forward in the call God has put on your life.