It will be helpful to look back over these entries in the months and years ahead. The primary expectations I have for this sabbatical are entwined. To overcome my inability to process the heaviness and grief that has landed in my heart and robbed me of passion and focus. I lost a number of wonderful people over the past year plus. Also, to strengthen my heart and spirit to finish this last chapter of my life well. One of the dynamics of a sabbatical is to completely sever yourself from ones work/ministry related activities and relationships. The past four days have already proven how much I love what I do and who I do it with. I serve with some pretty spectacular people in a challenging and exciting environment. With all of that stripped away, I'm getting a pretty good look at how much my personal life has eroded. Business has a way of providing excuses for our not pouring attention into the very things that make us...us. My roles in life, in and of themselves, do not define me. It's me--the individual fully loved by and fully open to God that must flourish. I taught this sentence hundreds of times and somehow lost my grip on it. God is far more interested in who you are than what you do. My life infused with power from replenishing my soul, renewing my mind and obeying my God will make what I do matter. This was a good day.
