NACR Daily Meditation for Monday, May 31, 2004

31 May 2004 07:00:01 -0000

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NACR Daily Meditation for Monday, May 31, 2004

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"When I went to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ and found that
the Lord had opened a door for me, I still had no peace of mind, because
I did not find my brother Titus there. So I said good-by to them and went
on to Macedonia."2 Corinthians 2:12-13

Paul was a missionary writing to a congregation that had mixed feelings
about his ministry. Under these circumstances we might reasonably expect him
to defend himself. We might expect him to say 'Things are going great! Open
doors! Packed stadiums! Now on several continents! Soon on satellite to
the whole planet!" But he doesn't say that. He tells the truth. "There
was an open door, but I had no peace of mind". Paul chooses to do honest,
straight, appropriate, risky self-disclosure. "I was anxious and lonely
and it effected my ability to work. I could not minister to others because
I was too needy." Paul rejects the 'superstar' or 'hero' model for
ministry. "I can't do this alone," he was saying, "I need Titus".

Like Paul, we have limits in our work and ministry. God does not ask us
to be superheros. We may wish for this out of a deep need for approval,
but it is not what God asks of us. Like Paul, we will have open doors that
we will not be able to respond to because we are too tired, or too anxious,
or too lonely. It is part of the reality of being human. God understands
these kinds of limits.

Lord, I want to do it all.
I want to be a superhero.
But I am so limited.
Give me the grace to be honest.
Give me the courage to admit my loneliness and anxiety. 
Give me the courage to admit my exhaustion.
Give me the grace to be human.
Amen.

Copyright 1991 Dale and Juanita Ryan 

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