Tuesdays with Morris

Yesterday, I made my way to the Muncie Mall. Walking through the Muncie Mall almost always makes me miss living close to the UP Mall in Mishawaka/South Bend. Not that the Muncie Mall is awful (it’s a lot better than the Anderson, IN and Piqua, OH malls), but the UP was a great mall. Most hardcore shoppers in the Muncie area probably head down to Indianapolis or up to Fort Wayne to do their shopping. However, the mall was pretty hopping as I did my shopping.

As I set out, I had a list of items I was shopping for…I had planned ahead, asking for a list from my wife of things she desires to receive. Since she sometimes reads this blog, I’m not going to mention what I did or did not purchase for her. But, my shopping for Emily was fairly painless because I had a list to serve as my guide.

But, then I tried to do some shopping for my parents and my sister. This is where the shopping started to get difficult. I don’t have lists from any of them…I have no guide to assist my shopping. If I were to ask, my dad’s list would have a bunch of techno-geek equipment that I couldn’t afford, my mom would probably refuse to give me a list, and my sister would probably say something like “oh, whatever is fine…just remember whatever I get I have to figure out how to get home.” So, I wandered through the mall like a chicken with his head cut off.

This made me think about how Christmas shopping can be similar to church planning. There are times when the church has it all together…we have our lists together…we have a game plan to guide us as we take this faith journey. Then, there are times when the church doesn’t have it all together…when we don’t have our lists…and we end up running around like chickens without heads.

The effects of not planning effectively as the church impacts the entire worshipping community. When I’m not prepared to shop, well, it really just frustrates me. When we’re not prepared as a church, it frustrates the masses. We have a responsibility as church leaders to put our best effort forward…to pray, plan, vision, dream, listen, and put together a guide. It begins to become apparent when we don’t have a clue as to what we’re doing. And, to me, that seems to communicate that we’re not doing the best we can with what God has given us. When the church just makes things up from day to day, it’s difficult to bring others along.

When we have it all together, things begin to run smoothly. People can see, feel, and sense a clear vision and direction of the ministry. More and more people get on the same page. We begin to see the unity of the believers actually become a reality. The needs of those in the church and the community begin to be met. People can get excited about what we’re doing and where we’re going because the will be able to see what lies ahead.

Now, can God work when we don’t have our lists together? Of course He can. But, I believe He desires for us to do our part…to be as prepared as we can be so that He can go to work.

When you have a list, you can either use it or rely on your intuition to pick out the right gifts. When the church has a list, we can either use it and rely on the Holy Spirit to work and move.