Confessions of a Spaz

Hi my name is John and I’m a spaz
There I said it

In my case this means emphasizing activity to the point where I would become involved in any ministry possible.

Part of that comes from a genuine desire to reach others with the Gospel of Christ. But to be honest being a spaz affects my ministry philosophy as well since any time spent at home is looked upon as “inactivity”. Obviously in the past this led to a mindset that focused on cramming as much ministry outside of home into the day as humanly possible.

Recently though the Lord has made some drastic changes to that philosophy. Changes that have led me to step away from a number of ministries, and block out five to six hours a day at home [1].

The reason for this is quite simple…there was no time for the truly important ministries.

In the past I would spend thirty to forty-five minutes a day ministering to students in local schools through tutoring ministries. This was an awesome opportunity, but it usually took more than two-hours to complete when you factored in traffic and other issues.

Now it’s definitely worth taking two-hours out of my day to impact a child’s life. The problem is that left very little time at home before leaving for a 1:00 or 2:00 ministry.

Which of course meant I attacked some very important ministries in “spaz mode” [2]

1. Like communication with prayers supporters about my Visa process
2. Deeper Bible Study for personal growth
3. Education through reading books and articles
4. Writing blog posts, and recording video updates
5. Compiling necessary documents for my Visa application
6. Working through Christology notes for a class in Bangladesh I will teach in June
7. Preparation of tutoring lesson plans
8. Concentrated prayer about my Visa process
9. And writing articles that apply the Truths of Scripture to cultural challenges

Most of these things would receive less than a half-hour as I frantically ran around the house trying to get stuff done before leaving.

Worst of all sometimes I would come home drained because of the tutoring sessions [3] and have no motivation to actually do the work!

So last week after finishing my school ministry (and the Kev IV farewell tour) I adopted an outdoor patio as my office. And the place where I would invest time in the ministries that truly matter.

• Coming up with real answers to the challenges our culture faces from a Biblical Worldview
• Creation of a real relationship with prayer supporters that shares the good, bad, and ugly parts of my journey home
• Developing of Bible studies [4] that can be used for discipleship
• Making sure that everything is ready with the Visa process while seeking God’s leading
• Studying more of God’s Word
• And becoming the man God has called me to be

Oh don’t worry John the spaz will still come out, but not till about 2:30. Which gives me plenty of time to invest in the things that truly matter.