Empty Pursuit

Over the course of the last 15 years or so, the Lord has been gracious to show me that many of the things I was spending my energy and time on are what I call an empty pursuit.  To get an idea on what I’m talking about, imagine yourself walking through a huge maze that represents your life.  You turn corner after corner thinking you are on the right track, only to find after a long time that you have run into a dead end.  You spent so much time trying to master the maze only to realize it was literally for nothing.  That was me.  

 

I am a career educator.  My empty pursuit took the form of pursuing higher positions in the field of education, eventually becoming the principal of two different schools.  I was extremely driven to achieve and was getting the promotions that I wanted.  But with those promotions came additional responsibilities that began to rot away my available time to pursue ministry opportunities that the Lord had brought to me.  Because I was so busy, I found myself studying the scriptures with others less and less and turning down opportunities to participate in expanding God’s Kingdom.  I just didn’t have the time, and over time didn’t even have the inclination either.  For those who know Jesus, you’ll know that that was not satisfactory to Him, and how thankful I am for that!

 

The Lord initially opened my eyes to the lost people of the world by sending me and my family to live in Everett, Washington, the most unchurched part of North America.  We lived in the inner city and planted a church that began in our home and expanded to the local elementary school.  While the church was short-lived, we did learn a lot while living in this particular context and shared the Gospel with as many people as we could.  Some accepted the good news but many rejected it outright.  Over time we learned the importance of sharing as we could while still maintaining good relationships with those we encountered.  

 

God did something else while we were stationed in Washington that continues to tug at our family.  During that time, my wife and I were privileged to go with our sending church to two different countries in south Asia to see what the Lord was doing overseas.  We were able to train up believers, pastors, and new believers using Bible stories that were intended to be shared by them with friends and family members.  We saw and experienced tangible moves of the Holy Spirit in these places, tremendous spiritual darkness and oppression, and the ultimate victory that the Lord achieves over those things.  Above all we realized that we love the people there and want to serve them.  

 

On top of all of that, we encountered people who traveled for multiple days to come learn more about Jesus from us, and that alone made me realize what kind of pursuit I needed to be doing in my own life.  If the Lord is so active in these parts of the world, and people are desperate to know more and to have an encounter with the living God, why on earth would I continue to pursue other things in life when the only thing that really matters is where someone spends eternity?  That reality has really captured me and I’m so grateful for it because it is from the Lord.

 

As a result of the Lord’s work in my life, I have finally let go of the empty pursuit life.  I have stepped down from being a school principal and have gone back to the classroom to recapture more time to spend on Kingdom efforts.  Personally I am all in on what the Lord is doing in south Asia and will be spending as much time as I can in that context while discipling and training others.  When trips to that part of the world are headed out, I will be on the airplane every time! I am also praying about the Lord’s long-term vision for my life in that part of the world.  

 

If you find yourself today in the empty pursuit life and are dissatisfied with it, I’d be happy to share more of my journey with you.  The Lord may be beginning to push you in a new direction, and I’d love to walk through that with you.  Feel free to reach out to me about it so we can begin the conversation.