Heavy, Deep & Real ministries

I was stunned this morning when I had a notification from WordPress letting me know my blog site’s October 2023 numbers. According to the report, the site had 1,042 views and 742 vistors.

WHAT THE HECK!!

I actually had no idea that the site generated that much interest. In fact, I have been thinking just the opposite. I figured about 30 people would regularly view it to get my latest sermon video or check in to see if I’d written anything.

DANG – I just checked my Heavy, Deep and Real Facebook page and I have 325 followers! Last time I checked I had like 27!!

What is going on here other than I am a complete social media moron!!

First off, THANK YOU all who support what I am doing. It doesn’t matter whether you agree or disagree with my posts. The fact that you’re checking in means a great deal to me. AND the best conversations I’ve had have been from people who reach out to me when they actually do disagree with me! Some of these folks have become friends!

Now, I have to mea culpa this morning as I sit at my desk drinking a Ghost energy drink looking out my office window at our wooded property surrounded in a morning misty fog: I’ve been lazy and distracted from this blog. I have let my business get in the way of this project. This morning’s numbers really convicted me.

Like everyone, I have my reasons for being MIA – we spent nearly five months working on a home remodel which interrupted a bunch of stuff. School started in August and I’m teaching two classes and an independent study which keeps me busy. My pastoral counseling duties have increased exponentially – must be a full moon! And the regularly ministry of preaching six times a month, mentoring, and serving keeps my plate full.

Not only have I neglected this blog but I’ve not been doing my personal studies!! I’m in the middle of a master life coaching course and I am continuing my studies in Jewish Old Testament thought. Then there are the workouts I’ve missed due to a heavy schedule and a couple nagging injuries.

I know, call me a whambulance!

That all said, the point here is that business can keep you from doing what God has called you to do!! It’s also one of Satan’s best tactics to keep us from our calling.

There is a book out there in the leadership genre called Good to Great by Jim Collins. He explains how you can move from doing good things to doing great things. Well, God has called us to do great things for Him but many of us are stuck in the good.

All the stuff I’ve been doing outside the ministry that has kept me busy is good. In fact I could say they are very good! But they’re not the great that God has called me to. When I get involved in things that distract or detour me from the great the good becomes a problem.

There is a saying that “good is the enemy of the great.” When it comes to our call from God Satan is always trying to fill our life with good things to keep us from the great things God has for us. Let me give you some more examples.

My call is to pour everything I have into other people. All my experience, knowledge, wisdom (such as it is), resources, time – everything. To be God-centered, I focus on looking at the world through His eyes and then doing what I believe Jesus would do based on His example to us in the Gospels.

I fail everyday.

It’s like I have spiritual ADHD!

I’m distracted by comfort. I like just hanging out and watching a movie or television show.

I’m distracted by social media. I love looking at what everyone else is doing and keeping an eye on people.

I’m distracted by the news. Having been a newspaper reporter and editor in a previous life I’m a news junkie and spend a lot of time reading news stories on the various sites. My morning routine includes looking through half a dozen news sources and a couple sports pages!

I’m distracted by my health both physcial and mental. I’m actually sick all the time and have chronic pain and there are days I give into it. I also have C-PTSD which causes me to disassociate by scrolling Facebook for too long just scrolling to scroll – it comforts me in a weird way.

There is more but you get the idea. For the most part not of this is bad stuff (other than the disassociating thing). Everyone can take time to watch a show, look through social media, read the news, and take care of themselves when they’re sick. But this stuff is not the great God has put in my life.

Here is what my focus should be:

Loving and encouraging people. Whenever I am around anyone I should be an encourager sharing the love of Christ with them.

Preaching the Word. One of my spiritual gifts is exhortation and I need to be out there sharing the gospel. Yes I preach six times a month and have a “regular” congregation of people to whom I preach. But I need to do more!! I have to find ways to share Jesus more!!

Being more engaged in certain ministries. God has gifted me with both the ability and experience to do strategic planning, organizational management, development, and more. I should be getting more involved with some of the ministries I support by giving this experience to them instead of just a check.

Pouring into others. I do a ton of pastoral counseling and mentoring but I feel sometimes I’m getting stale – just walking through the motions! I need to double down on my commitment to prepare for these meeting and be more engaged. I have such a meeting in 90 minutes and I’m fired up to do my best!

Keeping up on my blog. I need to write more, ensure that the sermons I record get uploaded both to this site and my YouTube site. (I have a podcast – Rev. Tom Talks – but Anchor.fm and Spotify did some funky thing and I can’t figure out how to upload to that site). I must be more diligent here.

I just have to buckle down and make sure what I am scheduling is Great not just good. My time gets eaten up by a lot of things – time is in fact my most precious commodity! I have to use it more wisely.

So, thanks for kicking my butt this morning everyone! I needed that reality check; people actually are paying attention to this site, my HDR site, and sermons so I need to not get discouraged and do what God has told me to do which is preach, counsel, mentor, teach, write, and He will get all this to the people He knows needs it.

Okay, I’m off to prep for my next meeting!! I promise I’ll see you soon!