I am most appreciative that there is a greater awareness and freedom to admit we struggle mentally. Especially for men, we were reared with the old-fashioned expectation that “real men don’t cry.”
What a load of crap. Was Jesus Christ a real man? A realer Man was never to be found in time and space than the God-Man Jesus Christ and I know I just used deplorable language but I like the sense of that odd phraseology: a realer Man was never found.
I had an eventful Monday after experiencing a great day of worship. Late Sunday evening, news broke of President Biden pardoning his son, Hunter Biden.
Like most Americans, I quickly formed an opinion; unlike most Americans, I took to social media and made my musings strongly known regarding the presidental pardon.
Providentially, on Monday I attended my church's prayer initiative, held every first Monday of the month in a local park in New Braunfels, Texas. As usual, it was mighty empowering when a group of Christian men, no matter the size, gathered to pray.
I knew all the men present, but one was in attendance, someone I had not seen in months because he had taken a preaching assignment for a church without a pastor.
I didn't recognize him at first, though he looked familiar. After a few seconds, especially after he prayed, it all began to come together, as he had guest-preached at our church a couple of times.
After our prayer time, we spent some meaningful time catching up and discussing our country’s current sad state of affairs. It was during that time that he inquired whether I was still keeping up with my blogging, and here is where the thesis of today’s foray into blogging comes into crystal focus.
I took a mental break because life, even as a committed Christ-follower, is frankly HARD. Some theologians describe an alarming phenomenon as the Parking Lot Conversion.
The Parking Lot Conversion occurs when the Evangelical family magically transforms into a pristine and idyllic Evangelical family right out of a Joel Osteen propaganda video the very moment the family vehicle pulls into the church parking lot. Magically, all of the muck and mire of life dissipates the exact moment the tires make contact with the parking lot gravel.
As Evangelicals, we are expected to toe the line and respond cheerily and eagerly Blessed & Highly Favored when responding to greeting fellow believers who inquire, “How are you doing? Even as many really do not want to know the honest answer and would probably be inwardly annoyed if you did proceed to share your soul with them on the current state of affairs transpiring presently in your current walk with the Lord.
Additionally, blogging is not for the faint of heart, especially if you seek to honor God with your blogging. As my friend astutely said regarding my feeble attempt [thankfully, my words, not his] at blogging, it requires precision and nuance as we wrestle with the thoughts of a thrice-holy Almighty God. It is no small thing to represent God correctly.
Then you throw in life in general, and it becomes vexing sometimes to continue to put one foot in front of the other and plow ahead. Even at life’s best, we all long for something greater if we are honest and vulnerable. The philosopher Paschal said there is a God-shaped vaccum in the heart of every person
The only thing left to be determined is what we will use to fill the hole God has purposely left: Himself or other stuff, and you already know Satan has a lot of counterfeit things to dangle in front of us.
But back to my blogging or, more precisely, my lack of blogging. I would not call it being burnt out because I love what I do, and I know my output will never be measured by misleading human terms like the number of subscribers or likes and comments. God will measure my output, and I am really seeking to come to terms with that glorious promise. I know we say it, sometimes all too quaintly or cavalierly.
Yet, even as we delight in God and all that He is doing and seek to be oh-so appreciative, it is still a daunting task that requires a mental break here and there.
I would submit that we find Jesus Christ modeling this need [not that He was suffering from a mental breakdown]. But we do find Christ repeatedly withdrawing even from the Twelve to regroup.
Granted, Christ’s regrouping entailed more concentrated prayer than my regrouping, but I pray you can still surmise my thesis though I might not be doing the best job of communicating. In my defense, it is 4:54 AM, so my mental juices are not firing on all cylinders.
I just want to solicit your prayers that I remain focused on my desire to finish my fourth-quarter string for the name and majesty of my Sovereign Pontentate Jesus Christ of Nazareth.
That means I write consistently but in a balanced way, seeking to stand grounded as I deal with all that the God of this Age will seek to interject after he gets permission from God. Sometimes, that will mean I take a mental break when I believe I need to and not beat myself up as if I am competing against someone.
That will mean I seek to get more involved in corporate prayer, especially with other men, so the monthly time of prayer at Landa Park is just what the doctor [you know we call Jesus Christ a doctor, right ] ordered.
That will mean I start producing YouTube videos again because, oh boy, are there so many things to discuss in our increasingly dark and darker world.
From the Joe Biden pardon to a recent dialogue with a college colleague who rebuked my style of Christianity while informing me she voted for Kamala Harris because Donald Trump is a racist. Only to recently find out she takes her cue from Roland Martin, a most vile and crass “Preacher of the Gospel.” There is a need, and I am firmly convinced God has sovereignly shaped my life to be my contemporary version of John The Baptist, a voice crying in the wilderness.
Yet, I am no good to anyone if I am not taking care of my mental and spiritual health, so it is good to rest even from the things you love.
I love to run, but I stopped for a while because I was putting too much stress on my knees and have not totally healed from my meniscus surgery last May.
It is evident this is why God so wisely instituted the Sabbath and even the Year of Jubilee.
Yes, the tenor of our arch is towards gainful employment, even as retirees, but we must take care of ourselves physically and mentally.
Lastly, please consider joining my prayer team for our upcoming mission trip to Latin America. The costs have risen significantly due to the volatility in the area we are going to, but my God is more than up to the task.
Would you let me know if you will graciously pray for me and my teammates? I am still $600 short of my fundraising requirements, so no donation is too small if you believe God is leading in that way.
I will attach the link: https://eastwest.managedmissions.com/MyTrip/C6749RVK
As usual, let me know what you think. Until then, keep your hands to the plow and seek to serve for an Audience of One.
With fear & trembling,
Ricky V. Kyles Sr. DEd.Min
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