It’s July 16 and life has accelerated.  July has now seen: 3 weddings and their corresponding rehearsals.  Our National Convention.  The begining of WARP–Wednesdays at Riley Park.  The first of three Summer Fun Days in the parks.  The first two of several mission teams.  The beginning of our Upward Basketball Camp.  I am watching our Cityview interns, Carey, Rebecca, Katy and Jarrod going full steam; you are doing great!  Yesterday was full too, with orientation for two mission teams, a block party, a BBQ, and our morning gathering.

What do you do when life accelerates?

There are lots of reasons life gets moving full and crazy.  Hopefully there has been some planning that gave some order to the chaos; that’s especially possible when you know its coming.  So it is with summer for Cityview.  We know this season of intensified activity is coming and therefore plan for it.  But there are also the unplanned seasons of chaos.

In both the planned and the unplanned I find that it is especially important to anticipate the need for recovery.  Stress is not always the problem.  Recovery is the problem.  After a long run, a body needs recovery.  So does a soul.  So I try to schedule in the recovery times.  An hour, a day-off, some fun, some reading, some pulling weeds in the garden, walking around with the hose after dark watering the plants, hitting some golf balls.  Or I just go and have a cup of coffee, take a walk.  And of course there is the evening cup of tea!  I take these as opportunities to continue to set things in front of God.  Often my regular spiritual disciplines get pushed around by the chaos or the season of acceleration, so I have to push back purposely into prayer and Scripture reading.  But’s it not just me, my own family gets into the action and this is where the planning of recovery becomes quite the challenge!  My personal need for DAWG’s–the Day Away With God, is often mirrored by my family’s own need for recovery as well.  I’m having to consider what family "recovery" looks like.  Jesus did this for his own disciples when he invited them to go with him "across the lake" after their own season of intensified and accelerated activity.

If it sounds like I’m talking to myself about what I need to do, that’s because I am talking to myself about what I need to do!