Making Space

This month my church Northstar is doing a series entitled "Make Space" and is basically going to be explaining how to make space in our lives and remove the unnecessary clutter that sometimes takes up our time and energy. This series couldn't have come at a better time for me because I have SO much clutter in my own personal life that it's not even funny. Last year especially, came with a lot of baggage. Last night at worship rehearsal at our East Bay Campus, Pastor Adam Carter rallied the troops as he always does every Friday night with an encouraging message and a take charge speech. He shared that he recently cleaned out his garage and it gives him the peace of mind knowing that a lot of the useless, unnecessary and unneeded junk was removed, and he now has room to invite people over for ping pong. Although this is seems like a trivial thing, it's very indicative of our own lives.We get so caught up in business meetings, traffic, errands and commitments that we fill our lives up with a hectic schedule and a busy attitude. The more room we take up with these things, the less room we have for ourselves, and more importantly, less room for God.

I had lunch the other day with a long time friend and spiritual mentor of mine, Eric Schrotenboer. This dude has been with me on my walk with Christ from the beginning and has been such a huge blessing to me in my life. When I first met Eric, I knew there something different about him. It wasn't him that was different but something through him that I couldn't explain any way but different. At the time, my walk with Christ had literally just begun and I wasn't at the level of understanding what it was that set him apart from every average person I met. Eric made time for me, no matter what was going on. If I invited him to an event, he would show up. He never said I'm too busy or give me a false yes, he showed up every time. To this day, if I ask him to go to lunch, or just to talk, he'd make time for me. This is SO critical in making relationships with people: making time. Being available to someone means more than "rain check". Being available speaks in volumes to someone more than it is apparent. In the life of Jesus, He always made Himself available. To the blind man, He didn't say that he would catch him later, or that He was too busy. To the leper, He didn't say that He'd love to but _____. He made time. Now, many will argue that Jesus didn't have a job, or kids or school or family to worry about, and while this is true, Luke 9:62 tells us "No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God". Basically, if you want to make or keep relationships, you better be available.

I always enjoy having lunch with Eric because whenever we get together we discuss life, theology, ministry, the places we've been and stories we have. I love having lunch with any good friend of mine because in that moment, we are experiencing what God desires for us: community. Which also is a foundation for discipleship. In that moment we both take a small pause in the busy schedule and just breathe and enjoy the simpler things in life that God offers to us freely.Salvation and Discipleship are 2 different things. Salvation is a free gift, we can choose to accept it, but discipleship is a choice that we must diligently work at. We can be safe  by ourselves with eternal life, or we can go out and touch a life who in turn might touch another life, and then we eat at our table in Heaven with all the people we loved in life that we took the time to reach. Community means making time. Relationships require time to grow and to work. Time means being available. Being available means making space. How do we make space? That starts by looking into ourselves and recognizing what needs to go. Do you really need that 3 hours of tv? Or can you call a friend and ask how you can pray for them? Simple things. That's all it really takes. In my own life, I have a lot to sort out but the important thing is I'm making the time to do so, and that is where God comes in and takes care of the rest.