Life lived intentionally
I was lucky enough to attend the Catalyst West conference last Friday. Catalyst is a gathering of some of the brightest and most innovative pastors and thinkers from around the country who speak to church ministry leaders. It’s like pastoring the pastors in order to refresh and reinvigorate them on the mission they’re on.
Like I said, I was lucky enough to go.
The day was fileld with an incredible amount of ideas, sound bytes, worship and creative energy, but it was one small tip from Saddleback Church pastor Rick Warren that hit me particularly hard. During a one-on-one onstage panel with Andy Stanley, Warren slipped in a small phrase that could have easily been missed in the onslaught of zingers he was shooting out.
Divert daily. Withdraw weekly. Abandon annually.
Sure it’s only six words, but it’s the reason Warren claims he’s been able to complete six woship services every Sunday, write books, grow one of the country’s largest church congregations, be a part of the global effort he’s leading to combat AIDS and still maintain energy after 35 years of pastoring.
In others words, it’s not about time management, but rather, energy management.
To divert daily is to find a period of rest at the end of each day. We live busy lives and often carry a huge burden of expectation on our shoulders whether it be family, friends, work or any number of other things. In order to keep our minds and bodies fresh, we have to seek rest at the end of the day. Warren’s advice? If you work with your hands, rest with your mind. And if you work with your mind, rest with your hands.
When I first heard him say the next two words, I thought he was nuts. What does “withdraw weekly” even mean? Simply put, he was reminding the crowd of our call to take one day of rest every week.
One day to enjoy the fruits of our labor.
One day to absorb the greatness of what God has created around us.
One day to remind yourself that the world does not depend on you alone.
As a believer, I’ve always thought the Sabbath was somewhat archaeic but hearing Warren talk about it convinced me that it’s more important today than the day it was first commanded. And it’s a full day off. No chores, no errands, no nothing. Do what it is that rests you completely and do it for a full day.
Abandoning annually was more like a no-brainer to me, but it was still important to hear nonetheless. Warren reminded the crowd that taking a vacation is one of the best things we can do for ourselves in terms of becoming refreshed. In this case, he recommends taking at least one day every year to escape from your routine—and escape from everything, including your cell phone and computer.Yeah, that last part sounds hard to me too, but if Warren can walk away from his network of 100,000 people one day a year and return to things intact, I know my little bubble will be just fine without me for a day.
Taken together, Warren’s “divert daily, withdraw weekly, abandon annually” advice is more of a challenge than a simple recipe for finding more energy. Saying you will take a day off here and there sounds easy in theory, but is really difficult for the average person to put into practice. The challenge, then, is to life life more intentionally where you are accountable for your time and how you manage your everyday routine. And that’s a challenge I have a feeling will be more like training for a triatholon.
But I’m up for it.
