Typical Vacation
I entered the workplace 30 years ago this summer. My first job was at a Kmart. Throughout my life I have had several jobs that were the normal Monday through Friday with an occasional weekend meeting or business trip. The nice thing was that I generally only had to think about my job from about 8 am to 5 pm Monday through Friday and then I was done. I rarely ever thought about what was taking place while I was out. I didn't need to find somebody to take my place at my various tasks before I left on vacation. I simply requested time off and when the time came I left without another thought of work until the next Monday when I returned. All of my work was sitting there waiting for me.
I was thinking about this today when a church member told me in an email that I was supposed to be on vacation. I realized that I started my vacation on Friday evening by going to visit a church member at the hospital and then burning a DVD on my home computer that evening because I could not get any of the computers at work to burn it. I then delivered the DVD to church on Saturday so they could have it on Sunday and went to visit another church member at a hospital. Sunday morning I got a text message from the senior pastor and then Monday morning I got a follow up email from him about some worship service problems while I was out. I also had several work related emails that needed to be dealt with today which I answered after I finished some yard work (which was only done today because it was the first free day/evening I have had for almost two weeks). I even drove up to the church office today to get a check I was expecting and took time to talk to several people about some ministry needs.
I'm not complaining, it is simply the nature of ministry. I just never even think about how busy I am until I suddenly have some time to actually sit down and rest. I recently told a group of music ministers that I believe all music ministers are hyper. We cannot even sit around with each other for very long because we must be doing something. Sitting at meetings or dinners makes me more tired than anything else I can imagine. I don't enjoy just sitting and talking. I really want to be working on five things at once.
Perhaps this is why those of us in the music ministry need to hear the words of one of our own who wrote: "Be still, and know that I am God." (Psalm 46:10) Sometimes I do hear God speak to me through a beautiful melody, sometimes I hear his voice in the poetic words of a song or hymn, sometimes He speaks while I am sitting with a friend in the hospital, sometimes God stirs my soul while I am planning worship or preparing for some seasonal program, but sometimes His voice cannot be heard over the noise of the very ministry that He has called me to do. Whether serving at a local church or touring the country doing 5-7 concerts a week, I believe that musicians particularly need to find time daily to sit in utter silence so that we can hear the voice of God minister to us.
Now, I plan to go off the grid for a few days. I am unplugging from the matrix and turning off all of my devices. My family will be the only ones who can reach me as I spend some much needed quality time with my wife and sons. Then I will return on Thursday and start preparing for the Denver and the Mile High Orchestra concert at our church on Friday evening. But I will still find time to "be still" and remember the One who called me to minister to those around me.
I was thinking about this today when a church member told me in an email that I was supposed to be on vacation. I realized that I started my vacation on Friday evening by going to visit a church member at the hospital and then burning a DVD on my home computer that evening because I could not get any of the computers at work to burn it. I then delivered the DVD to church on Saturday so they could have it on Sunday and went to visit another church member at a hospital. Sunday morning I got a text message from the senior pastor and then Monday morning I got a follow up email from him about some worship service problems while I was out. I also had several work related emails that needed to be dealt with today which I answered after I finished some yard work (which was only done today because it was the first free day/evening I have had for almost two weeks). I even drove up to the church office today to get a check I was expecting and took time to talk to several people about some ministry needs.
I'm not complaining, it is simply the nature of ministry. I just never even think about how busy I am until I suddenly have some time to actually sit down and rest. I recently told a group of music ministers that I believe all music ministers are hyper. We cannot even sit around with each other for very long because we must be doing something. Sitting at meetings or dinners makes me more tired than anything else I can imagine. I don't enjoy just sitting and talking. I really want to be working on five things at once.
Perhaps this is why those of us in the music ministry need to hear the words of one of our own who wrote: "Be still, and know that I am God." (Psalm 46:10) Sometimes I do hear God speak to me through a beautiful melody, sometimes I hear his voice in the poetic words of a song or hymn, sometimes He speaks while I am sitting with a friend in the hospital, sometimes God stirs my soul while I am planning worship or preparing for some seasonal program, but sometimes His voice cannot be heard over the noise of the very ministry that He has called me to do. Whether serving at a local church or touring the country doing 5-7 concerts a week, I believe that musicians particularly need to find time daily to sit in utter silence so that we can hear the voice of God minister to us.
Now, I plan to go off the grid for a few days. I am unplugging from the matrix and turning off all of my devices. My family will be the only ones who can reach me as I spend some much needed quality time with my wife and sons. Then I will return on Thursday and start preparing for the Denver and the Mile High Orchestra concert at our church on Friday evening. But I will still find time to "be still" and remember the One who called me to minister to those around me.
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