I wrote this recently for a colleague who was finishing her ministry role.
May the blessing of work unfinished be yours.
Be content that it was not all yours to complete.
May the blessing of unfulfilled goals be yours.
Be content that others also need to seek their dreams.
May the blessing of unsolved problems be yours.
Be content that those most worthy are most wicked.
May the blessing of frayed relationships be yours.
Be content that they and you may heal and grow.
May the blessing of an anxious heart be yours.
Be content that the strength of your desire marks the fullness of your hope.
May the blessing of exhaustion be yours.
Be content that your energy has been expended with faithfulness and courage.
May the blessing of unrecognised service be yours.
Be content that the Giver sees your giving with gladness.
Amen.
Deeply profound, but simple and cradling. Belongs at the end of a ministry season, but alo each space in which we discern and reflect – that is the end of each day. It is hard to be grateful for the unfinished, in a world that demands productivity and ministry roles for which the coparticipants seek transactional results rather than transformed lives. These words you offer are worth receiving and absorbining deeply into one’s mind and soul. Thanks Craig. Feeling blessed by this- Jeff
Hey Jeff, thanks very much for your kind words. I appreciate them very much. i wrote these words as much for myself as for my ministry colleague, at a time when not much seemed to be going right. So you’re right that these are things that we need to be reminded about all along the journey. Why has it taken me a lifetime yet be learning them still. Shalom.
Helpful words Craig, for even when we finish a short term Supply, in which we invest ourselves fully.
I am not a minster in placement or short term supply but these words Jeff are approriate for my everyday life as a Christian and I will cherish using them.