Enough About What YOU Think ...

:-) Now on to what I think! So Jana said, "I would love to hear your thoughts about 'more with fewer'." (and if you haven't been back in a while, go check out Kelly's salsa recipe in the comments, too -- yum!) Bless Jana's heart. You know those are the words to open the floodgates! 'Cause you know I have been thinking about it, and with my thoughts come lots and lots of words.

However, I am also very curious about the group she mentioned: YouthWave. Looks worth looking into!

So my thoughts... truthfully, my initial thoughts were, "I can't make that work; looks good on paper, but...; maybe in a different season of life..." Then I started examining why I was making such excuses. And the primary reason is that it will take an enormous shift in my current lifestyle (which means a fairly substantial shift in my family's lifestyle). First, let me mention that before Randy said that, he wrote the word 'mentoring' on the white board behind him. I like that word, believe it to be very scriptural and godly, and like to see mentoring in action -- particularly when someone is mentoring ME! But the reality is that I hesitate to intentionally put a plan in place to mentor someone else (more later).

So, continuing with my excuses, I started thinking, "Well, what do I DO that I could mentor someone else...? I've quit my job, so I'm not in that type of lifestyle any more..." It didn't take too long to realize that... well, I AM married. I did survive my first year of marriage. Wonder if there's a new bride out there that would like to walk this journey with me for a year? Also, I'm a mom. I survived the first years and the diaper years -- it wasn't pretty, but the three of us made it out alive which was questionable on some occasions. Wonder if there is a mother of young kids out there who wonders if the never-ending laundry and constant chatter are all there is that would like to walk this journey for a year? I purposefully SEEK OUT godly women who are further down the road than I am, but not everyone does. Why don't I seek someone out who isn't quite as far down the road?

And, to be honest, this is where I get hung up. I will pour out my soul to the 'text box' on blogger for all of you people to read across the world, but to approach an actual human and invite them to 'walk with me' for a bit -- that's tough for me. AND I don't take that invitation lightly or casually. This would require time. Actual time out of my life (and theirs). And we all know that's what none of us have enough of. However, what if I did less of the 'mega-ministries' -- you know, the less with more ministries that I feel obligated to help and support. I may have more time for the fewer. But the ministry leaders of the 'mega-ministries' would frown upon me for not helping. And that would hurt my feelings. Seriously, these are the struggles of the tender-hearted people pleasers (actually, I don't think ANYONE sees me as that, but somewhere in my heart I'm all of those things).

But I'm not going to let the idea drop. I'm going to pray and pray and pray about it. What do you think it will look like on my end? I have no idea (seeing a 'vision' -- of a decorated home or a grown child or a mentoring relationship I haven't made yet -- is one of my biggest handicaps. It absolutely doesn't work for me). But I do feel God calling me to go 'deeper in' -- and not alone.

Oh -- and, of course, it should go without saying that I believe I am living with 2 of my best mentoring projects (as long as they will let me walk with them...!)