Tracy Talk III

I’m not a patient person. I want to do what I want to do now or go where I want to go quickly. I
want to skip the work or drive it takes to get there or reach my goal. For a few years, I’ve
wanted to take up running. I have lots of friends that run and I want to run a 5k. I can walk a
5k, that’s something, but I want to run it in under 30 minutes. The problem is I think I should
just be able to get off the couch and run a 5k this Saturday morning. I don’t want to put in the
work to train to become a runner. I just want to run like my friend who runs at least 10 miles a
day. (I’d probably hate running, because I’d want to reach my destination, not enjoy the run.)
This journey we’re on to discern God’s vision may, at some point, seem like its taking too long.
Or, you may feel like we should just start doing stuff. We have a lot of great ideas and we
want to start doing them. But, like becoming a marathon runner, we have to prepare for
ministry. We have to take the steps, do the work, of discerning what work God is calling us to
do. There are lots of great services we could offer or projects to do, but we have to discern
what it is God is asking us to do. Not all work is for us. We can’t fulfill someone else’s calling.
God will equip us to do the work He calls us to do.
I’ve attached the summary of the demographic study that the Board and Elders reviewed last
night so that you know what they are working on. Enjoy this period of discernment. Pray for
the leaders of the church to be faithful in their work. Pray that God give you vision and
wisdom. Find joy in this journey.