April 01, 2007
Sabbatical
At long last, I finally have a few minutes to talk a little bit about why I’ve been so flaky with my journal entries lately. For you, my faithful friends, who meet me regularly for a cup of “Coffee Talk” you know these last few months have been crazy busy. The insanity really peaked last fall when I was writing two books at the same time, speaking on the weekends, and trying to get my family started out right for the school year. As you’ve probably noticed, I haven’t been able to recover as quickly as in the past. I feel like I’ve been playing catch-up ever since.
Let me back up a bit. Not only was my schedule out of whack last fall but God, in His infinite wisdom, chose to use that season of my life to do an emotional and spiritual makeover in my heart at the same time. I’m fairly certain it wasn’t coincidental. It takes a lot for me to crack under pressure. Since I’m pretty sure that brokenness was the goal, God allowed the stress to come at me from all sides to breakthrough my strength so that He could reach the most protected parts of my heart. He started a deep work that still feels like it is in the beginning stages.
Toward the end of 2006 I felt like the Lord was calling me to a Sabbatical. At first I thought it meant that I wasn’t to write a book in 2007, other than “The Busy Teacher’s Guide to Prayer” which was due in the spring. (Which really boiled down to a 7-month writing sabbatical.) Over time, He revealed the depth of His plan. First He made it clear that it was to be a full year off from writing – from May 2007 to May 2008.
Then, out of the blue, (yea right!) my publisher asked me to reconsider writing the Teacher Prayer book. They wanted another title but I suggested that we shelf the idea of another book altogether until after God was finished with whatever He was up to in my life. They sensitively and graciously agreed. Which means my sabbatical has come sooner that I even imagined. I am free from all book commitments! Praise the Lord.
Last fall, the Lord gave me the passage from Ephesians 3:16-21 as my focus for this sovereign work of grace that has begun. I have personalized it for myself and say it every day this way,
“According to the riches of God’s glory, I am strengthened with might through His Spirit in my inner man. Christ dwells in my heart and I am rooted and grounded in His love. I comprehend with all of the saints what is the length and width and depth and height of His love that passes knowledge. I am filled with all the fullness of God! God is doing exceedingly, abundantly above all that I can ask or think according to His power that works in me. To Him be the glory in me, the church and my family to all generations forever and ever. Amen.”
That is my goal…to know, really know and experience, the love of Christ. Another key verse for this season is Psalm 46:10, “Be still, and know that I am God.” As I slow down from busyness and stuff, albeit good stuff, I am redirecting that time and energy into being instead of doing. My focus these next 13 months is on relationships. I want to know myself better, go places in my heart that I have been too afraid to approach up until now. I also want to know my family and friends more intimately and be able to have the love of Christ flow through me to the people I am called to serve and encourage, namely you!
This takes time, hence, the sabbatical. Which brings me back to you. I still plan to journal but not as regularly and consistently. As I have time and as the Lord stirs things in my heart and life that I put down on paper (or a Word doc) I will be excited to share them with you. On the weeks when I’m too busy being and don’t feel like doing then I will post an archived journal entry from the last six years. Hopefully, they will still be new to you, or at least feel new.
My goal is to be more consistent with my monthly E-letter but I can’t even guarantee that. I just promise to be true to whatever pace God is working and hopefully that will mean keeping up regular communication with you in some form or another over this next year. Who knows, God may start speaking so fast that I have more to write about than ever and my journal entries won’t slow down at all. I really don’t know.
But if I slow way down, just know that I will miss our weekly “talks” and that when I do have something to say you will be the first to know and I will be full of excitement to share it with you. Please pray that God will complete the work He has started in me and that I will have the courage to go as deep as He desires. I have a feeling that my life and ministry won’t even look the same when this heart work is done. I am filled with holy expectation for what is ahead. I hope you will still be here waiting for me. I miss you already.
Posted by weblion at 04:27 PM
