Issue link: https://cp.revolio.com/i/1471816
Chaplain's Corner Tom & Dee Sanchez National BSHDFC Chaplains How To Return From The Gathering So, you've made it home from The Gathering. You had a great time! You met new friends. Spent time with old friends. You had a powerful time with God. So, how do you keep the fire going as you return to the everyday grind of life: your job, your family, your church, and your chapter? 1 st gear – Micah Orloff talked about getting our motorcycles ready. Getting parts, upgrading components, washing, and prepping them. He talked about how we have to be in gear when the light turns green, and we let out the throttle or the motor will rev, and nothing will happen. Well, the light has turned green. We've been to The Gathering. We've finished the maintenance on our spiritual preparation. It's time for us to be in gear and start moving again when we get home. It's time for us to engage. 2 nd gear – Grant Jones talked about the need to move past 1 st gear – how we limit ourselves if we don't shift gears as we move forward. We don't want to be stuck with just the milk of the scriptures, but we need the meat and the solid stuff. We need to step up and continue progressing in our walk and our ministry. This means we need to continue feeding ourselves the Word on a daily basis. Spend time in prayer daily. Spend time with other believers to encourage and keep you focused. Be involved in your local church. If you aren't grounded, you'll struggle. If you don't connect to the fuel source, you'll make a lot of noise but not go anywhere. It would be like trying to shift from 1 st to 3 rd as you ride. You can move forward, but it will be difficult and not as productive. You also run the risk of missing a gear and ending up in neutral when you miss the shift. Lots of noise, lots of rpms, but no progress. Don't fail to make the shift. 3 rd gear – Jim Love reminded us that while we may be able to start in 3 rd gear, it is more effective to go through the progressions. Know what you're doing and start in 1 st . Move to 2 nd , and then shift to 3 rd . Know how to engage. Know where the friction zone is and when to shift. This allows us to move and move efficiently. I am reminded that when we hit the twisties, we often find ourselves shifting back and forth between gears, especially 2 nd , 3 rd , and 4 th . We have to adjust depending on the situation. We must know when we need to drop a gear and lean into a curve, or when we can shift and open up the throttle to let 'er rip! When is the time to accelerate our ministry? When do we need to back down and focus on our relationships? We need to know where we are going with our ministry, or we'll have problems doing what we're supposed to do. We need to shift efficiently and effectively. 4 th gear – Though Laz talked about only 4 th gear, we know this is our cruising, highway, or high-speed gears. When we've done all the prep work, when we've put ourselves in a situation where we can really open her up, we need to be ready to go. This is where we put in the miles. We don't go far in 1 st or 2 nd gear. We may have to navigate the complexities of city traffic or the twisties in 3 rd gear, but when we're on the road, when we're really eating up the miles, we must be in our higher gears. We need to be ready. We need to have a plan. So often we talk about when we ride and say it's about the journey and not the destination. This is a bit of an exception. Our destination is Heaven! The journey we're on needs to be focused on that. Is the work we're doing helping others get to that same destination? Have we provided enough guidance and witness to help those around us, that ride with us (especially the HOG Chapters) to know how to get where we're going? What can you do now that you're home? Pray. Tell others what you have learned. Spend time together reviewing your notes. Make a plan. Set some goals/deadlines or mile markers. Get with your chapter. Go back and rewatch the videos from The Gathering. Develop your plan to engage in the Great Commission. Pray with us. You can join us on Thursday nights via Zoom. If that doesn't work for you, start your own. We have a group that meets on Tuesday mornings at 10am in Lake Elsinore. What time and place works for you? Can you find 3-4 others who will meet with you regularly to pray for this ministry? Prayer helps keep us focused on the goals we've set. Prayer helps us focus on the eternal nature of our mission. Will you pray? Will you commit to engage? ¿