I am sometimes a very dense person and so I wanted to share about a recent process of discernment for something that is a bit silly, but perhaps a good illustration.
I have posted before about the order and state of my desk and work area. I like to live amongst the chaos, perhaps an explanation about why I have a heart for student ministry. My area is messy because I allow it to be, because there is not really any storage for youth stuff in the church, my desk becomes like a dropbox of sorts for others, and the mess makes for some distraction during times when I am having trouble focusing.
Well, in the past week I have had a number of conversations, encounters and come across a blog post that has encouraged me to shift things up a little bit. First, I had about 3 conversations with folks about storage concerns in the church and making room for “stuff”. The conversations always ended with me explain that I knew how hey felt because in a very real way my work area is also a storage area. Next, a buddy of mine left a couple of notes around my desk and I found the last one a couple of days later with a “we need to get coffee” ending. My rationalization is that I has worked a 12 hour day and the desk was particularly bad on that evening. Now things are getting serious, I thought, my disarray could potentially be a detriment to my coffee/tea addiction. Finally, I saw this guest post from Josh’s blog all about the need for an uncluttered workspace. I have been rolling these events around in my mind for some time. I also want to project the best picture as possible of the church to those who enter the space. I am hoping that the reclaiming of the space would then offer a more hospitable place to be in (however then I don’t have it as an excuse to meet at a coffee shop for meetings).
I cannot help but think that this is more than a series of random events, but rather the spirit nudging me into a clutter-free direction. Last night while I was in between meetings and the internet was out (another prompting of the Spirit), I began the process of uncluttering. I went through a closet in the youth room and pitched a number of things and rearranged others. I put books on a newly claimed youth worker resource shelf and moved my recycling bin to under my desk. I am excited!!!
I don’t expect it to be “clean” but perhaps clutter free is a real goal.
