As we leave behind the month of June and bask in the aftermath of a long July 4th weekend, we find ourselves scrambling to get work and personal schedules back on track. After all, the long weekend often affords us the opportunity to rest and relax – to barbeque, swim, enjoy Fourth of July fireworks, and reconnect with family - but the recovery is where the challenge lies. We always feel the need to get right back on work projects, on workout schedules, and into our regular routines, and we don’t use the downtime to our advantage or to our benefit in the long run.
I like to take time off to reflect, and I encourage others in my church to do the same. When we take the time to reflect and focus, we can accomplish so much more than when we’re scrambling day to day, project to project or paycheck to paycheck.
Certainly, our creature comforts ARE important as are the daily rituals that make us who we are, but without time to think on what we have accomplished and what we CAN accomplish, we are not living up to our true potential. William Shakespeare once said, “We know what we are, but not what we may be.” And this holds true for most of us. After all, it’s when we are relaxed and at peace that we have clarity of thought, and in those moments, we can project what we need to do and what we see for ourselves in life.
I talk a lot about achieving success. And, of course, I mean success in every way – not just in the traditional big car, big house, big job sense. I mean that we all need to determine what makes us happy, what makes God happy, and what serves our families and communities well and go for it!
Proverbs 2: 7 – 9 (NIV) says:
7 He holds success in store for the upright,
he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless,
8 for he guards the course of the just
and protects the way of his faithful ones.
9 Then you will understand what is right and just
and fair—every good path.
The scripture tells us here to be faithful and to walk with God in a Christian and charitable way and that, in doing so, our walk to success will be protected and supported by the Almighty God himself. IF we reflect on occasion, we can check ourselves and we can make sure that our priorities and our lives are in line with that faithful walk that God wants us to take.
Over the long holiday July 4th weekend, we may have spent extended time with family, and had a lot of conversational journeys with friends. In these moments, we had clarity of thought, knowing that this time spent in fellowship and family felt right. If we take this philosophy into our daily lives, we can feel right about all the initiatives to which we put some vigor and some effort. We can walk, talk, relax, and reflect knowing that our introspection is healthy and necessary to personal success as well as success as a Christian in God’s eyes.
I’ve talked a lot about conquering lately, and I do feel that taking the spirit of our holiday weekend into our daily lives will help us to conquer stagnation and fear of what we CAN accomplish in life. It’s been a little while since I’ve done this, but I’d like to highlight a few community events coming up that might provide us all with a little joy, faith, and direction as we take time to enjoy life and experience new opportunities for fellowship and personal direction:
Bike the Burgh Historical Bike Tour is a reoccurring event every Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday that meets at 10 am at 500 First Avenue downtown. Time to reflect is ample as you’ll explore familiar haunts in Pittsburgh, and Mount Ararat’s community of East Liberty is coming up on the tour. Check it out between now and 30 November 2016. More information here: http://www.visitpittsburgh.com/includes/calendar-of-events/Bike-the-Burgh-Historical-Bike-Tour/23409/
The August Wilson Center / African American Cultural Center has a number of events coming up throughout the summer and into the fall. Visit their website here for information on upcoming events to restore, enlighten, and rejuvenate the most stagnate of routines throughout the year: https://culturaldistrict.org/pages/aacc
