May 17, 2004

• Sometimes resurrections take
  time. It did in the life of Christ, too: three days from crucifixion to
  resurrection morning. In my own life, it's been a year since I resigned
  my position as pastor of a small congregation. I was exhausted and
  burned out. For months I sat around and read mindless mystery novels as
  I waited for my spirit and mind to recover. I didn't have the heart for
  anything heavier, let alone the attention span. As the fatigue has
  begun to lift, I've started to look around for ways to use the gifts
  and the education that have been given to me. Slowly, things have begun
  to open up. Nothing full time, but an opportunity here, and a project
  there. I am beginning to get excited.

  I think the between time, that dormant tomb-time that lies between the
  chapters of our lives -- the deaths, if you will, and the
  resurrections, -- is important time. It is gear-shifting time, time to
  put away the old and prepare for the new. It is a time to incorporate
  the best of the old, and to open up to new adventures and
  possibilities. Even the butterfly must do a little cocoon time between
  worm-time and flight. Even the children of Israel spent time in the
  wilderness between slavery and the promised land. Whatever metaphor you
  use, when you're in the middle of it, though, it simply seems endless.

  The thing to remember is this: we serve a Resurrection God who will not
  leave us in the tomb forever. Even in the darkness, there is the
  promise of daybreak.

  • 5:00 pm
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