The last few weeks I have spent a good bit of time doing yard work. Mulch, rakes, pruners and hauling off yard waste have occupied my attention. After several days of this work I feel sore but satisfied at seeing the progress we were able to make. I did sprain an ankle while carrying bags of mulch but otherwise escaped permanent injury.  As I pause to step back and admire our work I feel a sense of accomplishment.  I am, however, struck by the overwhelming reality that yard work, like much of the work I do in life, won’t stay finished very long.

People often ask me how I like the work of the district superintendent and whether I miss pastoral ministry. I do miss local church work and hope to return to it when my time in my current position is finished. (I am currently beginning my sixth year of a maximum eight year term.) However, there are some things I have enjoyed about the superintendency. One is sitting with Michelle in church. I have also enjoyed having a break from the every week routine that is part of pastoring a local congregation. As soon as you finish a sermon one week the next week looms before you. You might be able to take a Sunday afternoon breather but it usually isn’t for long. Even if you have another pastor on staff and you have a break from preaching that week there are a myriad of other things, like Bible studies and committee meetings, that keep you from ever feeling like the work is done.

When I look at a freshly mown lawn, I can enjoy the sight and smell of completion. But I know the grass will grow, the weeds will encroach, and the work will need to be done again. And so, even while I admire its clean pressed neatness I brace myself against the inevitability that I will soon need to be out there on my knees pulling weeds again.  Every piece of yard work is a temporary victory. And yet, it also fits into a larger picture of having a nice yard. To judge that you have to step back and see the big picture over a period of time.

So it is in a lot of life’s work. The temporary victories, and defeats, fit into a larger picture – having a good life or enjoying a satisfying vocation. And every once in a while it is good to step back and look at that bigger picture to enjoy a sense of accomplishment. For a moment .  . . and then its back to work!