Splinter Therapy

2008 P.F. Change - Stewardship Package - Introduction

A pastor who has been very influential in my life once said in a sermon that our calling was "where your passion intersects with the world's need".  I don't disagree, but I don't think the statement is entirely complete.  As of today, I would say something like,

You can make the biggest impact for the Kingdom of God by discovering how what you have been given can best meet the needs of the world.  This is not a good bumper sticker yet; so, it still needs some work. 

When most people hear the word "stewardship" they think finances.  I think it is much bigger than that.  I agree with Tozer and John Wesley who said we own NOTHING.  It is not just the first 10% of my paycheck, but my house, my health, my marriage, my kids, my dreams, my 401k, etc.  ALL belong to God.  In American culture this is such a hard concept to grasp.  I know this to be true in my head, but I will admit that I struggle with walking this out each day.  We need to look at EVERYTHING we have and simply understand it is God's not ours; we are just the stewards of ALL that we have been given.

For the last several (5?, 6?, 7? - I have lost count) I have passionately pursued the question of "How should I be spending my time?"  How can I be a good steward of the time given to me?  The journey to answer this question has taken me to some very interesting places in my mind and heart.  I wouldn't say I have arrived at any answers, but the field of view seems to be coming more into focus with each passing year.  The general answer to that question is:  Pursuing relationship with God and helping others to do the same (Love God, Love Others).  How that plays out in everyday life gets a little tricky:  What should I do with my day after showering and brushing my teeth?  That is a much harder question to answer. 

I think the answer in how I live each day should be lived in response to God's voice - that trumps all.  But, in the absence of a "burning bush" experience, I think we would be wise to find intersection points between the needs of our world and our "stewardship package".  In my previous posts I identified the needs that are on my radar screen.  Starting tomorrow, I will begin to identify what I consider to be my stewardship package.  After that, I will list some ways in which I think those two things intersect and consequently what action steps I am considering. 

In preparation for tomorrow's post, here is an incomplete list of the areas where I think we should all try to identify those things that have been entruted to our care:

Financial Assets

Time - in the 24 hours each day sense and in the "this time in all of history" sense

Place - geographically, socially, etc. - basically our circle of influence

Health

Passions

Gifts (as in spiritual gifts)

Talents and Skills

Experiences

Need some Focus

On a more personal note, I wanted to write about my lifelong struggle of how to invest my time.  There are so many things I want to do, but I know I can't do them all. 

I have been a little depressed and anxious the last few weeks.  I feel like I need to make some choices and fully invest myself in some things and cut the cord on others.  Making the choice is what frightens me - what if I choose incorrectly?  What if I don't hear clearly from God and start going down the wrong path?  I am in my mid-30's; so my chances to hit the RESET button are limited if i want to produce the fruit that comes from a lifelong investment in whatever it is I should be doing.

I will probably blog more on these things later, but here are some of the core values that underly my "time management" philosophy:

1.  I will never find fulfillment in what I do or accomplish.  Fulfillment comes only in living a life of surrender to God, which I define as growing in my ability to hear his voice and growing in my faith to respond to what He has for me.  Fulfillent comes in accepting my identity in God - i.e. who I am, not what I do.

2.  That point leads to this one - my life is not my own.  It is a life of surrender and submission to the Father.  ALL that I have (financial resources, my health, my experiences, my passions, my family, etc.)  belongs to God.  I am just a steward of what He has given me. 

3.  The big picture.  There is a war going on all around us.  Whatever I do, whatever decisions I make, however I choose to invest each second of my life should be done with the idea of investing in and expanding the Kingdom of God.  I want the kingdom to expand in my life and to help others in their journey to do the same.

4.  Kingdom expansion is a grass-roots movement.  The kingdom expands one heart at a time.  Kingdom expansion works from the inside-out, not outside-in.   The kingdom expands from the bottom-up, not the top-down.

Moving Forward

Here is my current plan on how to make some positive steps:

1.  Prayer.  Spend time each morning and throughout the day seeking God's voice.  I have been doing this for several years now.  The focus has narrowed quite a bit over the years, but I am still a long way away from the "laser focus" that I feel God wants for me.  So, my prayers will be for:
  a.  Focus
  b.  Patience
  c.  Joy in the Journey 

2.  Possibly find life-coach that is spiritually grounded.
 
3.  Spend some time analyzing myself - what are my kingdom assets - what has been entrusted to my care / Of what am I a steward?

4.  Put a toe in the water.  Try my hand at a few things and see what seems to work / see what God blesses / see how God moves / see what doors open and what doors close.

5.  Learn to recognize my fears.  I want to live by faith not fear.  I hope to capture thoughts and figure out why I do the things I do, why I choose the things I choose.  Are my decisions fear based or faith based?

6.  I want to surround myself with people who either struggle as I do in this or who have found their specific role(s) in the expansion of God's kingdom.  Basically, I want to hang out with people who are awake, people who live their life with a sense of mission, purpose, and intentionality.