This past weekend I had the honor of hosting thirty incredible servants at the retreat center in Maria Stein, Ohio. The location was perfect for what can only be described as an opportunity to recharge and re-engage the vision of the Care Network at Ginghamsburg Church.

The Care Network was formerly called the Lay Pastors and throughout the years they have served the church in various capacities. Actually, they have done such an incredible job of serving that the mission of the Care Network has gotten a little mushy. As we worked our way through the weekend, one of the primary points of discussion was that we need to be experts in the areas that we decide are most important. In other words, in order to say yes to the right things we have to be willing to say no to everything else. And that is not saying that other things aren’t important. Other things might be appropriate work for God’s Kingdom, but the truth is that we need to know what things we can do best. What is our primary mission?

In the Army this term is called “mission creep.” Mission creep is when other realities of life distract from the primary mission. I’ve seen it happen in every organization I’ve been involved with and normally it happens when we become so busy that life seems out of control.

My encouragement to you, whether in your relationship, in your organization, or just in your own God calling, is to decide what you need to say no to in order to be able to say yes to the things that are most important.

What is the most important thing in your life?

What is distracting you from that important thing?

What can you eliminate to maintain focus?

Who can hold you accountable?