The Everyday Things
If you wanted to summarize my life up to now, it could probably described as...
Unsettled in the Negative sense
or
Adventurous in the Positive sense.
From as far back as I can remember I have been like this. Where ever I found myself in one place to long, I would begin looking past the now and into the future. Grade school was 6 whole years long or in other words forever. Junior High was so fun and over in the blink of an eye which suited me just fine because High school was on the Horizon. High School was another awesome adventure, but as it came to an end I was definitely ready for College.
I could have chosen a college in my home state, but that would have been way too boring, so I went to a state I knew nothing about, Nebraska. Now before you laugh, remember to a West Coast kid who had never seen a Tornado, experienced a real thunderstorm or experienced the Mid West, Nebraska was an adventure. And Concordia University, Nebraska, lived up to my hype and college amidst the corn fields was an incredibly fun experience. I wrung every experience I could get out of it, but after four years there, the winds of change started to blow and I was ready for what was next.
That was marriage. My lovely wife, Emily brought me to Minnesota and my adventures became our adventures. Minnesota was a new and wonderful land where people drive on frozen lakes and talk strange. We lived our life there together to its fullest. We bought a car, a house, a dog and a washer and dryer. We begin to feel like adults with these sorts of big purchases. We took kids on mission trips all over the country, hunted, kayaked, fished, traveled wherever we wanted and made so many good memories and friends. I loved my time in Minnesota, But... after about five years as a DCE in Minnesota, I started to get a hankering for a change of scenery. I was bored, looking for another adventure and so we leapt out in faith and headed to Seminary.
Seminary brought all kinds of adventure. New jobs, new friends, new church, summer Greek, a giant new city with endless entertainment at our disposal, no kids for much of it, a broken neck, four moves in four years, vicarage and a Master's Degree. I loved Seminary, all of it, but things come to an end and as Seminary wound down, I was definitely ready for the next big adventure. And what was that? St. John's Lutheran Church in West Bend, WI. In his wisdom and direction God used Pastor Hoehner, who decided West Bend would be the place for me. And yes, Wisconsin fit the bill, because we knew very little about it, except their football fans gave definition to the work fanatical, they wore cheese on their heads proudly and the state was shaped like a hand. So off we went... To West Bend, WI and a brand new adventure.
And what an adventure the last two years have been. So many new friends, men's retreats, learning how to be a pastor in the real world, raising a Son, softball teams and on and on the list of adventures go. This new adventure has fit so well into the pattern and pace of my life up to this point and we are very thankful for the time the Lord has give us here at St. John's.
But I have to admit, the oddest thing has begun to happen. Where I was once always looking to the horizon for the next big adventure, I find myself these days desiring and appreciating more and more the everyday things. An hour in the back yard with an IPod cutting the grass, reading a book with Zane for the Zillionth time, the time in a coffee shop working on another sermon, renting a movie with my wife and watching it in our basement or dinner at the table together as a family. I am not sure what is happening to me but I think… and I don't want to be premature in using this word, but I think... and keep in mind I don't take the use of this word lightly... but I think... this might be MATURITY. Now I don't want to be rash in throwing this word around but I think this is what Maturity is... becoming more content with right where you are.
I know this is what Maturity in faith is. As I get older, as I try to get better at parenting, being a husband and being a pastor, I realize that God's will for us is to rejoice and find peace and contentment in the everyday things of life. For these every day endeavors are what he has created for us as good and holy. Marriage, family, work, relationships and the routine of life are good. My whole life I have been restless, looking for what's next, but the older I get the more I begin to appreciate the everyday things and recognize them as gifts from him?
Does this sound like Maturity to you? Man, I hope not, because I am way too young to be mature. What do you think of this? Has this been your experience?
Have a great day,
A possibly maturing Pastor Guy Roberts
