Silver Lining Sunset

Most of our lives we probably sit around pondering things we could do, things we should do, things we want to do, things we’ll do later, and things we should have done.  For me, sometimes I think about doing things or I start thinking a lot about things that sound intriguing or even mildly interesting.  Sometimes, I’m just curious about things.  And so, I spend a lot of time thinking.  Thinking and researching and talking about it but never actually doing it.

I don’t do it because I’m scared and I don’t know if I’m capable.  Maybe I’m hesitant because I don’t know if it is something I actually WANT to do.  Maybe I’m hesitant because I don’t know if it is something I should do.  Usually, the hardest step is the first step.  It’s like running or going to workout, the hardest step is to get to the destination.  Once you’re there, it’s gravy.

But sometimes you just gotta jump right in with two feet and hope for the best.  Spending a lot of time pondering and thinking about it helps some but doesn’t truly get you anywhere until you actually take action.  And since the hardest step is the first one, sometimes it’s better to just jump in.  You know, like getting into a swimming pool because the water is so cool.  Better to just jump in and get it over with and then realize it’s not so bad after all.  Haha.

Since I’ve had several things on my mind lately that I’ve just been thinking about over and over again.  I decided to just take the plunge and hope for the best.

First off, I joined the Exodus Core Group.  I was really hesitant about this because I just didn’t know if it was something I wanted to do, should do, a combination of both or something else.  It was something I wanted to be apart of but did I want to fully commit to it?  Yeah, that’s a lot of time commitment and responsibility.  Did I believe in the vision?  Is there a plan? Can we actually do this? After much thought, prayer, conversations with friends, recent sermons, and studies through our Spiritual Formation Group, I realized that there wasn’t a really good reason to NOT do it.  And with that, I decided to just do it.  I have no idea what is going to happen.  We haven’t even had our first meeting yet.  But I believe that the experience will be a good way to grow spiritually and personally, it will be a way for me to use the skills God has give to me to serve our church, it will be a good way for us to grow with each other and to motivate each other, and it will give us an opportunity to make changes and impact the church in a (hopefully) positive way.  Will we be successful?  I don’t know but I sure hope so.  And since I’m IN IT, I’m going to try.

Secondly, I’ve been thinking about Team United a lot and how I need/want help with the ministry moving forward.  I’ve led the ministry for about 5 seasons/years and I would like to take a break, focus on new ministries, and have new leadership.  Once again, thought about it a lot, prayed, talked about it but was still a bit hesitant to take action.  Fears of no one volunteering, fears of what people might think of me, fear of people not taking it well all kind of bogged me down.  But the reality of it is that despite all these things, it is time and I’m ready for a break and for new leadership.  I want to help someone else grow and I want the ministry to continue to grow too.  And so with that, I reached out to several folks to see where they were at and if they were interested in taking on this ministry.  It was tough to offer that up but I feel like it is time.

Lastly, I’ve been eyeing this kickboxing class for a few days.  The classes look intriguing, the results look even more enticing.  It seems like a great workout and what better way to workout than to have someone else push you.  The hardest step was buying the groupon and the next hardest step is activating it.  I kept asking Jasen if I should do it and he kept saying yes.  I also tried to get my friends to join since I like buddy systems.  I kept looking at their website, at the groupon, at the videos, at their facebook.  Obviously I was interested, I just didn’t really want to do it myself.  Needless to say, I just did it.  I clicked the buttons and bought the groupon and proceeded to freak out.  I know once I actually make it to class I’ll be fine.  The hard part is getting there but at least I got through step 1.

So that’s it.  I just did it with fear and all.  Sometimes you gotta just do it.