I had an English teacher in the 8th grade that used to give us TCB days….”Taking Care of Business.” We’d just have the day to get caught up on anything in her class that we needed to get caught up on. I really loved those days because I’m a big fan of scheduling a block of time to have nothing else to worry about other than catching up on life. One of my favorite lines from Scrubs happens when Elliot has been cut off financially by her dad and she’s a good mess….she asks Dr. Cox what she should do and he tells her, “Get your life in order.” (And if you’re a fan of the show you know I censored that, for those of my readers that don’t care for the use of the “D” word).
Nonetheless, that’s what this post will be all about. Taking Care of Business. First I would like to take a moment and give a brief life update for those that I don’t see on a very regular basis. Here goes:
1) I am officially done with my undergraduate career. I went and bought a “Purdue Alumni” shirt yesterday and wore it to church as my way of announcing the fact that I pulled my finals out of my rear and passed everything. I was going to post a picture on here of me wearing it, but since I update this thing at work, I think I might look a little suspicious if I plugged my camera into the computer here. It was going to be me in the alumni shirt, with my typical goofy face and thumbs up sign. So, if you happen to be a photoshop fan, just get on facebook, choose any photo of me (bc they basically all look the same) and pen, “Purdue Alumni” on the front of my shirt. That should do it.
2) I am still currently “unemployed.” I use quotation marks there because I am still working my temp job at Fairfield and to my knowledge I will be here until I either find a job elsewhere, or they hire me (hopefully to do something besides compile paperwork for customers). I feel a certain sense of job security (if there ever really is such a thing) but yet I’m a little frantic about getting a “career” job. But, Fairfield does seem to be pretty fond of me, and supposedly “they” are trying to find me a position.
3) Maybe this topic is totally inappropriate for a blog, but in general, I tend toward being an inappropriate person, so here goes. Have you ever heard a guy talk about the bathroom rule? I think it’s something a little like, if there is a guy standing at a urinal you skip a urinal and use the next one. And maybe the same thing for the stall? And I’ve also heard it discussed that some guys are “pee shy” and can’t go if someone is too close to them. Well, I’m pretty sure I’m pee shy too. Because I can’t go if there’s someone else in the bathroom with me here at work. Just in the bathroom…not even in the stall next to me. They may be at the sink washing their hands, but if I know someone can here me, it just makes me so uncomfortable I just about stop mid-stream. Wow, that is definitely from the too-much-information desk.
And here’s the other thing that’s been on my mind. I’ve been so busy for so long, and I thought college being over would cure it, but it hasn’t. And maybe it’s just the holiday season that’s causing this massive amount of busyness right now, and if so, that’s great. But I just want some time to recharge and I feel like that day is nowhere in the horizon. Jesus was so good about “slipping away” for awhile and recharging…and I’m sure He had a lot more on his plate than I ever will. But how did He do that? How do you get out of responsibilities without letting people down? And I’ve been accused of taking too much on before, but there are certain things that have me feeling like if I don’t do them, they just won’t get done. Like the 2 and 3 year old class that I’m going to be teaching now…I know I don’t HAVE to teach it; they would have just rotated and had a different teacher every week. But that can’t be good for the kids to not have any structure in their class at this age. Plus, with Elmwood not providing material of any kind, how do we know that we aren’t all just teaching the same thing every week? For all I know, they may be hearing the story of Noah every single Wednesday night. What do you all do to “recharge?” Do you have an escape where you know you can go and be alone for awhile? With things like cell phones and the internet, I feel like we’re so bombarded with the need to be in constant contact with other people, that if you don’t answer your cell phone for a couple of hours people may start to wonder if you’re dead. (PS…just a side rant here…I HATE cell phones. Not in the sense that I don’t want mine, but in the sense that I can’t stand when people let the thing run their lives. I’m just pleading with you…if we’re out at dinner, please turn the thing off for a little while. Eating with others is a very important time for me and if it gets plagued with phone calls, I tend to get irritated very quickly. A certain campus minister that I know used to be on his perpetually…and I used to fantasize about throwing it in the toilet. I have anger issues, I know.)
Cbuss… these are very appropriate topics for a blog
And I’m about to take it one step beyond.. I’m not pee shy, i’m poo shy… I can’t do my business with someone else around. Even like in hotel rooms that you’re sharing with someone… it just doesn’t work for me 
as for me and a recharge, I have Cbuss over for dinner.
Where we can eat peacefully without cell phones ringing. 
And I used to have the same cell phone fantasy with a certain campus minister… 
see you tonight…
First of all, CONGRATULATIONS on graduating! I know it’s been a long crazy road for you, but you stuck to your guns and you did it. Without sounding too fatherly, I’m proud of you, really.
Secondly, I will offer my suggestions on finding time to “recharge”:
1) Schedule it like you do anything else, that way you know you have time for it. Sounds simple and maybe non-genuine, but if you don’t do it, it won’t happen as often as it should, which is obvious to you at this point. If you schedule it, whether it is daily or weekly (no less often than that), it will become a habit and also the part of your day that you cherish and look forward to. How long you need is totally up to you of course, but just do it, the rest will come naturally and give yourself enough time so you don’t cut it short.
2) My recharging is usually time spent with God, so when that is the case for you, make it a place that doesn’t distract you and a place that you only do this one thing in. Doesn’t have to be quiet necessarily, but just someplace you can focus. I have a sunroom in my house that I only use for reading the Bible, meditating, and praying. That way when I’m there I’m not thinking about other things I normally would be doing. Sort of my fortress of solitude, to pull from the Superman movies. Starbucks also works well for me, I have no idea why.
Thirdly, your comments about bible class very much mirror my own struggles with my congregation’s activities. We have families who became burned out and somewhat apathetic after a while b/c they felt the same way you do. “I have to do it b/c I don’t think it will get done otherwise”. Not to sound harsh, but that is a crappy attitude. I know that love for God’s children is your underlying motive, and that is great! But just as much or maybe more so, shouldn’t our motive be to glorify God by showing others the love from Him that is in us? The result (our action) is the same, but I believe that God will bless the actions even more in ways that we can’t possibly do on our own. Putting the focus on glorifying God will also help us serve with more joy, not worrying about the outcome as much b/c we have faith that God is in control of the situation. Couple that with making time for your “recharging”, and your relationship with God will grow even more! Not that I’ve reached that goal myself, but like Paul, I’m always pushing ahead toward the goal. Anyway, I also wonder if as leaders (which we both are), we shouldn’t be spending as much time preparing those around us (whether older or younger) to be ready to do the works in which we labor so intently at the present? As you’ve mentioned before, you don’t know when your time is up, and we need to be ready to pass the torch when that time comes. How to do that is another matter entirely, and I’m still working on that.
Sorry for the length, but you know me…
Oooo, so I think I was a little mean on one of my comments. I was on sort of a rampage yesterday, and you were the victim of some friendly fire, caught in the crosshairs. Sorry about that. I know your heart is pure when it comes to the work of the Lord, so I apologize if I offended you.