Okay, lets play a little game.

Let’s pretend that tomorrow, you disappeared. Don’t make a big deal out of what exactly happened and where you actually went because that’s not the point. The point is, what is going to happen once you’re gone?

In your mind, you will imagine that everything is going to fall apart… because you’re holding it together, right? Maybe you are, but it’s interesting how this usually doesn’t happen. I kind of wrote about this last week in my post “Jesus loves your ministry more than you do.” Somehow, the world will go one without you. It’s depressing, I know – but that’s how it works. Someone will pick up what isn’t getting done and somehow, it will get done.

So, here is my question: Is it possible that you’re doing more than you need to do. Your frantic and overwhelmed lifestyle might be totally manufactured and unnecessary… a product of your doing.

I know, your immediate response is that everything you’re doing is essential and you don’t even have time to get it all done. Could this be self-delusion? Again, if you disappeared tomorrow, all the important things that you were doing will get done by someone else. Maybe there are a few things that won’t get picked back up, but maybe they weren’t as critical as we thought they were.

I’m thinking so much about this because I’m experiencing something I’ve never experienced. As I’ve written last week, I just got back from a month long vacation. Leading up to my vacation, I was easily putting in 60 hour weeks. I spent a crazy amount of time tying up all my loose ends to make sure I could be gone for that long and to make sure that everything was properly delegated.

So I’ve been back for a week and I have this really crazy feeling. I don’t know what to do. I’ve had other people ask me about things and I’ve answered, “honestly, I don’t know.” It’s kind of refreshing not knowing because I trust that someone else is owning that and making it happen. The team has been busy cranking stuff out, but no one is overwhelmed. They’re working on some special projects and making huge advancements. Here’s what hasn’t happened though. No one has said, “Oh my Kenny, I’m so glad you’re back. Here, take all this stuff back. Here, can you do all this stuff?” It just hasn’t happened. So, for this week, I’ve just been checking in, getting caught up and slowly integrating myself back into the systems and processes of getting things done.

Maybe taking a month off for vacation is the best thing I could have ever done.

I know, some of you are thinking, “wait a second Kenny, I don’t have a staff.” You might even be a volunteer. I’m not going to let you off that easy because the same thing applies to you. In my first full time ministry gig, I had one staff person, but I had a 7 person volunteer leadership team that met with me for an hour every week and they put in a little time every week to mentor and spiritually develop them and they in turn helped me lead the ministry. The scenario is the same for you as well. If you disappeared tomorrow, your pastor or someone in leadership is going to find someone else to replace you and things will continue on. Why don’t you find that person who will replace you before you disappear and enjoy ministry so much more now.

Just a little food for thought. Don’t disappear though, okay?