Starting… Stopping… Moving…

One of the hardest things I’ve ever done is to start. Starting, I find, is difficult. It really doesn’t matter what it is… any kind of project, decision, prolonged effort… the beginning of it can take too much time. I know what I want to accomplish. I can see the end result in my mind. It’s getting underway… that’s where I can get bogged down. But I can also get slammed into inactivity when I should finish. I remember one wood project, I was making a cradle for a new baby in a cousin’s family. I bought the wood. I designed the cradle. I measured and cut all the pieces, sanding them down and fitting all their joints. And then it just sat in my workspace for weeks, while this baby was on its way. All I had to do was to glue and put the pieces together and stain it. What I learned is that moving helps. Instead of allowing some natural hesitation to weigh in, if I accomplish one small piece, one movement, a step in the direction of my heading, I’ll eventually get going sincerely. So, instead of berating myself, I just do a piece, and then another, and then another… and then I’m moving on. Taking the small step is sometimes plenty. When it comes to spiritual growth, that can seem insurmountable if we’re comparing ourselves to spiritual giants. But if the point is a relationship with God, then doing something moves toward growing deeply. Start a practice of prayer whenever you do a regular part of your day… when you first open your eyes, when you get into your car, when you sit down to eat… and your spirit will begin to ask for more. Just move… a step. Blessings, Geoff Keep up with Pastor Geoff at gskohler.com