Lessons from Vacation #10: Steady Pace wins the Race

I love being on vacation. It really is one of the key things I make sure happens every singe year so that I don’t burn out. I know this may seem like a no-brainer but vacation isn’t something I did regularly early on in my ministry career. But it is now.

While I do go on vacation to refresh and relax, I also go there to reflect and decompress. When I do that, I write. I’ve learned a lot from vacation that have helped me in my ministry and personal life. Check out those learnings here.

Recently, while on vacation, I was reminded of something that we were all taught as children. My daughter and I went running, something we haven’t done in a really long time so it was something nice to do together. I have been running for years but she has been running for just a few months. Because of this, I let her set the pace and I would follow along with her.

The really interesting thing about our run together was that she started off really strong, but then slowed down towards the end. Me, on the other hand, started off slow, but I ended up finishing strong and, if this was a race, I would have been able to overtake her at the end. It’s the classic story of the Tortoise and the Hare.

So what are the ministry implications here? It’s that a steady pace wins the race. In ministry there is pressure to start strong and finish strong. It is a rush, rush, rush mentality to get ministry happening and expanding quickly. Because of this there is a possibility to start strong but fade down the road. It may even cause you to make mistakes and take the next hill before you are ready. That is why it is so important to pace yourself. You need to be strategic with the mission, not go at a lightning fast pace and run til you burn out.

So how can you fight the temptation to rush ahead and pace yourself strategically so you last long in ministry and your ministry excels long term? Here are a few action steps you can take?

• Pray for Godly wisdom. God has called you to a certain ministry and you are ultimately in charge of it. While you may get outside pressure to increase the pace and move forward faster, you need Godly wisdom to set your pace and guide you to the next steps you are to take.
• Set SMART Goals. As described here, these are great ways to be strategic and put a time range on when you want to accomplish certain things. These help you keep moving forward without being overly aggressive as the “A” in SMART stands for attainable. Setting attainable goals helps you keep a steady pace.
• Don’t move ahead without adequate support. For instance, there may seem like you have a lot of pieces in play to create a new home group, but you lack additional leaders to help make it run. As much as you may want to move forward with a new home group, hold off until you get the leaders in place. If you move forward without all the pieces in place, you will be left scrambling week to week trying to make it work.

I have never talked to a minister who wanted to start strong but never finish. I never talked to one who just wanted a short term impact and then flame out. Those who last long in ministry keep a steady pace. Start strong but pace yourself. Ask for Godly wisdom, set SMART goals and move ahead strategically. The more you can take these steps the more likely you are going to have sustained ministry growth longer term with a greater impact in your community.

What do you think? How have you learned to pace yourself ? Share your experiences below or on social media using #ymsidekick.

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