I was listening to a recorded discussion as I was driving the other day. One of the people in the dialog is the pastor of a very large church. I have learned much by listening to him over the years and appreciate his ministry.
My ears perked up when he admitted that he had become angry when his neighbor's lawn was overdue being mowed. I pulled into my driveway and looked over to my own little patch of grass and realized that many areas of it were seeding out. The telltale little shoots were four or five inches high, even though I had mowed only about five days earlier. I was secretly grateful that the pastor (who, by the way, was sorry for his attitude about something so unimportant) didn't live in my neighborhood.
You see, I am particular about my yard. I don't struggle much with how my neighbor's lawn may look, but I am constantly doing little things to keep mine up. I rarely walk to the mailbox around the corner without adjusting something that isn't quite right. To put it simply, I enjoy keeping it nice.
My choice to spend time, energy and money on my yard reflects a personal value. If I told you that I really care about how the exterior of our home looks and never did anything to keep it up, you would say that I was hypocritical. To genuinely value something requires that I take action. It doesn't mean that I must be perfect, but it means I will expend resources to accomplish it.
As a pastor, I understand that a church values some things, too. This subject has been on my mind a lot because we just rewrote our values statement recently. Whether you go to church or not, whether you live in the same town as me or not, I can't wait to share it with you. It says much about us.
In the meantime, what does your use of time, energy and money say about your values?
