‘The glory of God is a human being fully alive.” –Ireneaeus
Tomorrow, Carrie and I will head out for Buenos Aires, Argentina where we’ll spend the next four months. Carrie will be the visiting professor for about 50 students at Pepperdine University’s Buenos Aires program. I will be on a ministerial sabbatical, which is designed to be a time of spiritual growth, reflection, and renewal, facilitated by a break from normal ministry activities and commitments.
The theme of my sabbatical will be based on a second century quote by the church Father Irenaeus: “The glory of God is a human being fully alive.” In part, this points to the idea that our human flourishing involves using our God-given capacities fully—our senses, spiritual gifts, natural talents, intelligence, opportunities, and resources. But Irenaeus is not defining the glory of God as mere human self-actualization or self-improvement. God’s glory is reflected by our human flourishing as creatures who love God, love our neighbors, and live with Spirit-breathed creativity. God’s glory is also a gift of grace, an outpouring of love from Creator to creatures. To be “fully alive” includes embracing God’s mercy and forgiveness, operating from a theology of abundance rather than scarcity, and relying upon God’s grace. Two questions I want to ask everywhere I go in South America are, “Where do I see God’s glory alive and moving here?” And, “How can I celebrate, appreciate, and even participate in God’s outpouring of grace in human lives here?”
A friend once shared an analogy comparing ministers with sponges. A sponge can be used to soak up water, then have the water squeezed out. Over time, ministry gradually drains the energy, creativity, and vigor out of a minister, like water being slowly squeezed out of a sponge. Eventually, the minister can become like a dry husk, unable to pour out the cool, refreshing waters of Spirit-filled care and Christ-like leadership. A ministry sabbatical provides the opportunity for the minister to drink again in a concentrated way from the living waters found in Jesus Christ, in God’s creation, in Scripture, in great books, and in human-made beauty that reflects the glory of God. In drinking deeply of the good, the true, and the beautiful, a minister can thereby be refilled and refreshed in such a way that living waters can once again flow out of the minister and into the lives of others.
I am tremendously grateful for this opportunity afforded me by our elders, our ministry staff, numerous volunteers, and the entire congregation! My commitment to you is to use this sabbatical season with wisdom and responsibility. I will seek to balance adhering to my plans and schedule with embracing unforeseen serendipities and opportunities along the way. I will seek to balance times for quiet reflection with times of active engagement. And I will seek to balance my desire to document and communicate my experiences with a healthy resistance to posting a selfie at every turn. If you’d like to read occasionally about my experiences, check out my sabbatical blog at andyswalldotblog.wordpress.com. ¡Hasta la próxima! (Until next time!)
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