Lessons in Change and Choas
I recently shared on social media that my theme for this first part of 2024 is “Under Construction.” My family is living super cozy and minimally in our basement while we have home renovations done. My place of work is in the midst of a major transition as we abruptly leave our base of operations and wait for our new one to be constructed, and we are still without a church home after 14 years of serving and belonging to a church in Harlem. Everything in life now feels up in the air, a little discombobulated, unfamiliar, and outside my comfort zone. While I know none of these circumstances will last forever, for the foreseeable future, I live here. The harvest of lessons for me to learn and opportunities to develop through all of this is plentiful.
Here is what I’m mulling over these days:
I love the idea of change and God doing “a new thing” in my life, yet I struggle with familiarity being torn down around me. That’s what life has been, areas both physical and spiritual being removed, thrown away, and made unavailable to me. But being torn down to the very “studs” of my life leaves me room to honestly examine what needs to go away forever and set a better foundation for what is to come. Less fear, more faith. Less rigidity and more moldability are in the Potter’s hands. Less stuff, more generosity. Speaking of that…
…I have accumulated way too much stuff! Seventeen contractor bags and four boxes of clothing, shoes, accessories, home decor, and unused kitchen items were donated. Ask me if I miss any of it. Not one thing. While I cannot say that I will ever be a full-on minimalist, there is a lot of minimizing that I can and will embrace. It’s not that there will never be a place for certain things; it is that I need to ensure that I am keeping certain things in their place.
My ability to lead in times of challenge can only be forged when facing challenges. I should be grateful that my job always delivers in this area. Seriously though, many of us want to be strong, seasoned leaders, but for this to be developed, we must go through tests and trials. How often have I quoted the scripture, “In this life, you will have trouble, but take heart, I have overcome the world”? Trouble is just that, trouble. It’s not inconveniences or glitches, it is deep, life-altering problems. As a leader, I can’t dwell in resentment of trouble, but be ever before the Lord to help me lead through it.
It’s here in this messy and precarious middle season that I am being formed. This next season will go by, and I can either get all I can from it or complain and self-pity my way through it. I believe God is with me and wants each day to be more than just one more day closer to goals and solutions. Each day can be an opportunity to become more like Him. Amiga, wherever you are in life, there are lessons and growth to be gleaned. That’s why we must keep our eyes fixed on Jesus. From His vantage point, the waiting, troublesome, and precarious seasons can be the most important.
