Enjoy the Moments
One morning I was headed down to Arlington, Virginia for an early morning meeting. And with Arlington being so close to Washington, DC, I wanted to head down really early so I could miss the major traffic. So, I got up at 5 am and headed down. As I was getting closer, I realized that there were no clouds in the sky and the sun was getting ready to come up. I thought, “this would be a great picture if I could catch the sun rise over DC”. So, I rushed and I got to the building and raced up to the roof to see if I could catch the sunrise.
It was such a beautiful morning with no clouds in the sky (as the cover photo of this blog depicts). And, in my mind, this was going to be an amazing picture as the sun was rising over, in my opinion, the most powerful city in the world. So I sat there, waiting to take a picture of the beautiful sunrise. The problem was I had to keep on waiting and waiting. It seemed like eternity for the sun to show itself but it was only 25-30 minutes. It was so odd as I was sitting there because I actually found myself becoming frustrating. I wanted the sunrise in the worst way but I also wanted to get on with it so I could do other things.
When it was all said and done with, I finally got a few great pictures. It was awesome, so beautiful and I got to post it on my social media accounts. After all, it didn’t really happen unless I put it on social media, right? 😉
But what I realized was that while I was so trying to capture this “moment” I actually missed a moment. Sure, I got to see the sun rise and it was really cool, but I wasn’t enjoying the moment. I rushed to get down to Arlington, raced to get up to the roof and then constantly looked at my watch seeing how much time passed while I waited for that dang sun to rise.
Isn’t that how life and ministry can be sometimes? We get so focused on accomplishing the goal or doing this or that thing that we actually miss enjoying the actual moments. We miss the moments that actually matter…not the finished product or the accomplishment goal but the making it happen part. Too often we can be so consumed by getting it done, not only do we miss the moment but we ruin the moments for others.
That is why it is so important to take a step back and make sure you are enjoying the moments that you have. Because let’s be honest, once we miss them, they don’t come back. And, as life sometimes has it, those moments we are encountering can be days, weeks, months and even years. We want so much to get something or accomplish this that we miss the processes and moments that it takes to get to where we want to be. I have done this before and as I’ve been reflecting on my life, I have realized I’m tired of missing the moments that make my life. It has been great the last few months when I realized what I was doing and then just embraced what I was going through and thoroughly enjoyed it.
So today, whether it is personal or for ministry, sit back and simply reflect on the moments you are encountering right now. Embrace them and let them shape you. You won’t be able to have them back. Sure they can be hard, but they can also be life-defining. And, who knows, in those moments you may find yourself content with where you are right now and thank God for the opportunity you are experiencing.
What do you think? How do you make sure you don’t miss the moments you are experiencing? Share them and your experiences below or on social media use my twitter handle @tapounder when you share. Let’s all learn from each other.
