The Holiday Battle

The holidays are some of the best times of the year; great food, family, friends, time off and time alone. It is a chance to check out from your regular crazy schedule. But one thing that good microchurch leaders never do is check out from their time with Jesus.

Trust me, I feel it too.

Holidays are some of the hardest times for me to stay connected with Jesus. Family you don’t see any other time of the year demands your every minute of the day. Mom or grandma is already up making breakfast before you are even out of bed, making it easy to start your day without that critical secret place time. Let’s face it; you say you are going to do it but by the time there is any down time during the day, you are already hitting the sack and preparing for the next crazy holi-day. Vacation rarely allows you to vacate; it is usually just as crazy but in a different environment and context.

As a leader, as a disciple, as a disciple maker, you have to FIGHT. Fight for that time with the Lord. Stay sharp. Stay fresh. Stay connected to Jesus. It’s always worth the battle.

Nothing is worse than coming off of a vacation expecting to be sharper than before but really being more sluggish and spiritually apathetic. This means you may have to say no to some family time. This means you may miss out on some activities. But do yourself and your family a favor and be filled with the Spirit this holiday season. Everyone wins when this is the case.

I always say bring people along with what you are already doing, so use this as a discipleship moment with some members of your microchurch. Hold each other accountable over Thanksgiving and Christmas. Make it a group goal to spend quality time in the secret place together. As iron sharpens iron, let your microchurch sharpen each other.

Abiding is the best and only way to ensure you are a leader who is running after the heart of God, so don’t vacation from the first commandment this holiday season. Seek Jesus with everything you got!