I’m Still Here

Hello!

It’s been well over a month since my last posting. I wanted to thank my readership for hanging in there with me.

When I recently wrote about turning 40, I think I underestimated the change. I suppose that I have entered that sometimes dreaded, mid-life crisis. However, I never thought that mine would take me down a path to where I was trying to be or act younger. No, mine is turning into a growing realization that we don’t have much time on this earth. As a result, we should be living for God and for His purposes.

One of the books I started reading last month was Patrick Morley’s, Seven Seasons of the Man in the Mirror. It’s a terrific book. I was stunned when I read the passage that described me fairly well. It was the passage on burnout. Page 169:

Feelings of high anxiety crash in at unpredictable times. The burned-out man becomes short-tempered and irritable. He feels friction at home, and guilt for depriving his family of time. He is tired at the beginning of the day, not just the end. During the day, he becomes easily fatigued. He suffers from a loss of focus. He frequently finds his efforts ineffective. He often procrastinates even with important matters. He finds himself frustrated with his performance, unhappy with his attitude, depressed by his circumstances, and confused about his direction. He is a prisoner of boredom, lacks enthusiasm, and is embarrassed by the whole doggone affair. On top of everything else, he often suffers from physical ailments such as headaches and neck pain. The lingering feeling that something isn’t right stalks him. His world appears to be coming unglued. And it doesn’t look like anybody really cares. All summed up and totaled together, it creates a crushing load. One day the man experiences a complete systems shutdown. He experiences a meltdown, an emotional burnout. He simply stops caring. But many times, he can’t show it because he is a Christian, and as we all known, Christians aren’t supposed to have problems. Yeah, right. –Patrick Morley, Seven Seasons of the Man in the Mirror.

That’s me and more. Patrick goes on to describe the guy that feels trapped, hates his job, and would like to just pull the plug and chuck it all. Family, financial, and and life responsibilities just add the entire weight of the world on his shoulders.

Sound familiar? Any of the guys out there going through this?

I intend on expounding more on this in the next week or so. I simply wanted to post a note to let you all know I’m still here. For what it’s worth, I’m not ready to chuck it all away. I know that God has a plan for my life and His ways and His timetable are not my ways nor on my timetable. I love my family and praise be to God, family life is going well.

My wife is my biggest fan and biggest supporter. Without her love and support . . . well, I’m not sure I’d be doing half as well as I am.

Prayer Request

I would humbly as you to keep me in prayer for the next few weeks. It appears that God has prepared me for the next phase in my life and He is opening a new door. Again, more about this a little later. Please, pray that God’s will be done in my life.

Thank you all for your visits in spite of a lack of posts. I’m confident that God is pushing me in a new direction to renew my spirit and His purposes in my life.

May He Increase!