"Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is."
– Eph. 5:15-17
Sometimes we may think planning is not Spiritual. It takes too much of the Holy Spirit out of the moment or event and leaves too much of man in the moment or event. But looked at from another angle, I believe it is one of the most spiritual acts we can do as a leader. When you prayerfully plan, you are making a statement about the future. We are seeking to understand and take part in God’s movement as He has expressed for us to join. In so doing we demonstrate that we value a process of discovering God’s will which most assuredly requires a sacrifice of time, energy and other resources.
When we prayerfully plan, we are sending a message to those we lead that we care about them. Ministry servants and leaders trust that we will utilize their talents, resources and time in a skillful and respectful manner. These servants will also gain encouragement by an event, moment or time span of seeing the movement of the Holy Spirit in meaningful ways.
We have gone through nearly two years of having plans dashed and learning to hold on to plans made loosely. Due to the challenging COVID era we learned some quality lessons that serve us well in adapting quickly to change. But one lesson we must not take away from this COVID experience is that we don’t need to take time to discern the will of God with leaders in the church and formulate our best plan to advance God’s kingdom. That would be foolish and heartbreaking to our heavenly Father.
Yes, the days are evil. We see evidence all around. BUT, this verse also reminds us that in the midst there WILL be opportunity. AND… we MUST make the most of it.
On the Adventure with you,
Supt. Ben
