It’s finals week right now at Monmouth College and the semester ended last week at Carl Sandburg College, the two schools where Ignite operates, which means one thing:
It’s time for a week off.
After a school-year long of meetings and prep work and planning the Czech mission trip and social events and counseling students and writing resources and fundraising and sending out tax-deduction letters and building our team, I need a break.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s been a great year for Ignite. God has impacted the lives of students in powerful ways this year – and we’ve seen a lot of firsts for Ignite:
- Our first Ignite group plant at Carl Sandburg College
- Our first offer to partner with a church to lead a mission trip
- Our first time transitioning to new board members
- Our first time bringing up a crop of new leaders
- Our first time raising up coaches from outside Ignite
- The first redesign of our website
- The first time a youth from Czech visited our Monmouth group – and prayed for us here in person
- The first time our Lent book went global – having been downloaded in over 25 states and 3 countries.
- Our first multi-campus retreat
- Our first multi-campus social event
I couldn’t be more excited for what God has done in us and through us this year.
But by the end of each school year, I need a break.
This week, I am taking that break from all my ministry duties.
No leadership meetings.
No mission trip meetings.
No Ignite groups.
No board meetings.
I won’t be planning any social events, preparing any resources or making phone calls to book speaking times.
I won’t be writing regular blog posts, here or for the Ignite blog, nor will I be reading and commenting on other blogs, either.
This is my recoup week.
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” – Matthew 11:28
I am looking forward to a down week. I am happy about having nothing on my calendar. I am excited to be done with back-to-back meetings every Monday night. I’m stoked about actually getting to bed at a decent time each night.
But most importantly, I’m looking forward to focusing solely on my relationship with God.
A season of rest reminds us that we are not what we do.
I am not Ignite.
I am not a college pastor.
I am not a writer, blogger, nor mission trip leader.
I am, first and foremost, a child of God.
So this week, I’m going to spend time reading and worshipping and exercising and visiting with friends. I’m going for walks at night, reconnecting with people I haven’t seen in a while and getting some much-needed sleep.
And, hopefully, connecting with God in a deeper way.