On “Planning on the Fly” and Ravenous Wolverines
It’s been tough finding a balance in life as of late. Especially in regard to my future life. Katrina and I are looking down life’s road and realizing that within 6 months I’ll be a free man (free of school anyway…the loan companies may have another word to describe my status). I feel that this road will have some new and unexpected twists in the coming months, and many of the decisions we make now have major implications for how we live in the future.
But there’s the rub - I don’t want to take the reigns from God and develop “The Big Plan”, where everything is neatly packaged and ordained from quite a ways off. And at the same time, Katrina and I working together in conjunction with others who are investing in what’s going to happen in a future we’re not totally clear on. I’ve been preparing 20 years of education to live outside of the educational system, and now that this chapter in life is coming to a close, I’m not sure I know how to turn the page.
The church fellowship I’m living in right now tells me that planning is at least unproductive, if not ungodly. I react to that on several fronts, but especially when considering my interaction with others. Planning is how people cooperate, collaborate and track together. The best kind of planning overtly shares the burden of the group’s common goals, keeping one person from having to own the vision themselves.
It seems that the worst comes from focusing on “THE PLAN” instead of planning. Your planning is not some document you’ve etched in stone, its a living breathing draft that is lived, worked, and revised every single day. We are human, we need to be flexible in our planning. In addition however, I know that a mediocre plan that is consistently worked on is better than epiphanies that contradict each other every six months. It’s about working toward the horizon, yet living for today with the hearts of your close friends in mind.
I guess its kind of like GPS systems they put in cars. If you give it a coordinates, it immediately spits out a PLAN for you to follow, and immediately you follow the exact directions it offers. But then something happens. A clown with a pack of ravenous wolverines jumps out in the middle of the road and you have to swerve onto a side street to avoid him. The plans change. The GPS recognizes this and helps you move toward your goal based on your new situation. It’s planning-on-the-fly.
As we move into a “team development” and “planning” phase this year, it is my goal to focus on planning as a lifestyle - listening to the Spirit, and working intentionally to draw up the sketches (rather than the hard and fast rules) of what our mission work might look like in Chicago.
So what are we doing about it? For starters, you can see what we’ve got so far on Our Vision page. I’m writing down thoughts and sharing them with people who have committed to journeying with us. I’m consistently listening to the Spirit for inspiration or new insights. I’ve joined a “mission team developers” Facebook group that puts other missionaries raising up teams in connection with each other for encouragement and reflections on how to go about planning. I’ve even drawn some of those mind maps…
Right now it just feels like I’m roving around in the dark. If anyone has any good suggestions on how to develop a meaningful long term plan, let me know.
Some of these thoughts came from an interview Tim Berry and Steve Addison.
Last 5 posts by Mark
- God is Wholly - October 2nd, 2008
- The Great Moderation - September 30th, 2008
September 10th, 2007 at 8:27 pm
I have found planning essential in my relationship with God. After a few years of dcciding not to I can tell you you end up daised and confused. A plan allows you to track with God and interact with him in a clear discernable way for both of you. He can tell you hey I don’t like this or hey, I like this about where you are going in ways that are not possible without a plan. It may be frustrating becuase for the most part our own plans are never what God intended, but it still opens space for clearer communication. Atleast that’s what I have found. Stick with the plan man, just be willing to modify at any moment when the Lord says “Dude you need to change this!!”
September 15th, 2007 at 2:21 pm
Mark - I really identify with this reflection. I specifically identify with the uncomfortableness with the two options regarding planning: 1) don’t do it because its not a godly thing to do; 2) plan everything and become a slave to the plan.
I like the idea of discerning prayerfully God’s leading and formulating plans that leave room for God to work and change the plans.
For me also, identifying, wording and revisiting vision has been helpful. The goals and plans change sometimes, but the vision God has given us allows us to check in with God about the journey towards that vision.
I know I’m not saying anything new or even anything very clear.
Bottom line: I like how you are thinking and the way you and Katrina are trying to live into what you are hearing from God. I like listening in.
Courage!
September 16th, 2007 at 1:09 am
Thanks for your thoughts guys. I’m honestly at a place where I’m having to exercise patience, as I really want others who are committed and present to brainstorm with us.
I just finished reading The Voyage of St. Brenden, a Christian Celtic text from the seventh century where a team of voyagers set out on the sea of their lives to seek heaven. At times in their “life’s journey” they are guided by the wind of God’s breath - he is the navigator for their journey…at other times, Brenden tells his men to row with all their might to avoid catastrophe/make haste toward land. There doesn’t seem to be a rhyme or reason for which route to take, only to realize that both paradigms are necessary.