The Secret Weapon of Spiritual Leaders
It's Easter week and I just sat down for my weekly review. I'm coming out of a very busy weekend - 4 services, a board meeting, a worship night and a vision casting tour. This coming weekend our church is doing 7 Easter services (the most we've ever done). Feels like we've been pushing hard for quite a while. But I got some very good advice from a pastor friend a while back about the week before Easter. He said, "Clear your personal calendar." And for the most part I did. That leaves me with a full day off on Monday, a meeting day on Tuesday, followed by 3 full days with no meetings. I can't even remember the last time that was true in my calendar. But I'm excited about it! That means I can hit Saturday and Sunday FRESH for 7 Easter services. Those 3 days will give me room for prayer-walking (or driving), deep study, family connection, reflection, rest, and planning. It hit me as I was looking ahead: The secret weapon of spiritual leaders isn't productivity or tools or notoriety or any of the stuff you might automatically think of. It's MARGIN used well. I, for one, am going to do my best to use this margin well this week. Can I challenge you - like my friend challenged me - to clear your calendar in every way possible this week? What would that look like for you?