“May”hem (and the Gift of Limits)
May is the busiest month of the year for most of us living in the burbs of Chicago: there’s the end-of-school-year rush, graduation parties, sports, college decisions, concerts etc… I’ve heard this phenomenon described as "May Madness" or "Mayhem*," or around ECRC I’ve even heard “Maycember” in reference to the other busiest month of the year around church.
Given all the great activities and opportunities for being outdoors that May affords, there’s no possible way to cram in all of the good things. If you’re a person prone to FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out), May is likely a trying month for you!
Our staff has slowly been working through a great book called, Emotionally Healthy Discipleship, by once-burned-out but redeemed Pastor, Peter Scazzero. We typically read a chapter a month, take counsel with one another, and actually DO THE SPIRITUAL EXERCISES as a way of trying to ingrain Jesus’ patterns of behavior into our lives a little more deeply.
Our most recent staff meeting was focused on embracing our limitations (including the limit of calendars and time) not as barriers to fight, but as sovereign, God-given gifts to be embraced for our sustained spiritual health. Often, we have strong feelings or emotional reactions when we bump up against one of our human limits. Sometimes our limitations can frustrate or disappoint us (my three kids have sporting events at the same time, where do I go?). Other times, a limit can give us relief (Whew! I have a good excuse to say “no”), contentment or even joy.
The counter-cultural, crucial question to ask when recognizing that you’re bumping into a limit is this: Have I come to a place where I’m being led to accept a God-given limit and respond with humility and acceptance – or – have I come to a place where the Holy Spirit is inviting me to push through a limitation, perhaps even creating a spiritual breakthrough.
As a general disrespecter of my own limitations, this question really hits home! I know that the typical answer to the question above is to humble myself and accept that I can only do so much.
But when I consider Jesus’ example – who had infinitely more wisdom, capacity, and energy than me or you – who regularly drew limits around his time, number of close relationships, Sabbath practice, to name only a few, I recognize that I’m cutting myself off from a deep well of God’s grace by trying so hard to get it all done in my own strength.
So as May kicks off and the Mayhem begins, perhaps you, too, can benefit from letting the Holy Spirit shepherd you day by day through the calendar with that wise question: Is today a day where I’m being led to accept a God-given limit – or – is God possibly inviting me to push through a barrier for a higher cause or purpose?
– Pastor Gregg
* In defense of May, it’s also widely considered one of the best months around the Northern Hemisphere due to its ideal combination of warm, mild weather, blooming flowers, and long days. May is the peak of spring, offering comfortable temperatures for outdoor activities before the intense heat of summer.