Dear Church,
The big comfy chair in my office is currently covered in my preaching robe, a Harry Potter robe, a trench coat and a Santa suit. My chair could be a symbol that I am crazy, that I need to put things away, or simply that I wear a lot of outfits as a pastor, a mother, a daughter and a friend. If I am not careful, I will get burnt out trying to wear all these outfits and do all the iobs that come with them. I need to set some priorities in 2020 and realize where I need to put my time and energy, and where I need to delegate and ask for help.
Let’s take my chair as a continued example. While I may have enjoyed trying Santa’s beard on for a moment, being Santa’s stand-in is not the best fit job for me (the suit definitely does not fit me), someone else could do a better job, leaving me time to focus on an area that “suits” my gifts and graces.
What are all the outfits that you are wearing? Is there enough time in the day to wear all of them with the time and energy that they deserve, or is the balancing act more than one person should take on and is taking a toll on your soul? In 2020, this new decade that we have been gifted, do you need to reorganize your priorities or learn to ask for help? Or, are you someone with some extra time that you could help someone who is overwhelmed and needing a hand, helping his or her soul in the process?
3 John 1:2 says, “Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul.” Take care of you this year, beginning today, for you are God’s precious work of art and you should treat yourself with no less care than the most valuable painting in the Getty Museum.
Blessings, Pastor Stacy