I confess to being a minimalist.  I do not need a lot of stuff to make me happy.  Maybe some of that is just being content with what I do have but either way it is true.  My closet gets cleaned out at least once a year of shirts or pants that were not worn over the last 365 days.  Most years will find me doing that twice.  Every so often I will gaze over the books in my library to decide which ones are really important.  That collection of books was once twice the size that it is now.  Some were left in other churches while some were sold or donated.  What is kept is usually somewhat valuable.

I say this because of recent developments here.  There was another cabinet clearing of books and papers just last week.  That is not the odd part of the matter.  What slowly crept into my mind was why some things are now being swept away.  I am getting older.  So much of what was cast aside was collected in my younger years.  There is a filing cabinet at home that carries my varied study notes and the like.  Even that was getting full with no room for what needed to be put in there.  I found myself discarding old files from perhaps thirty years ago.  The reason for such a sweep was I could not see me needing it over the next twenty years.  My actions were much the same as always but there was a creeping sense of a new motivation.

Most do not consider me particularly old.  Even my birthday may not say that antique status is around the corner.  But it does mean that so much of ministry is behind me rather than ahead of me.  I do believe the coming years can and should be the best after learning the hard way over and over again.  My goal is to keep active so age is an ally rather than a foe.  But at some point you have to realize that life counts as there are no do overs.  If you let me measure the past ministry you would find me to be my own worst critic. Sure there are many things that I would like to do over or different if given the chance.  We know that just is not possible.  Perhaps all anyone can do is offer that past to God for His blessing on our efforts.  But now we move into a new stage of life.

And so my cleaning out of files, papers, books becomes a real act of reflection.  What really gets me going with an energy that defies the calendar?  How much repetition do we experience moving in our journey rather than experiencing the newness of God?  Can we narrow down our focus to our core issues rather than being stuck in the traffic of lesser things?  All of this comes to mind for me lately.  I cannot give you any definitive answers just yet.  This is a process as well as a moment in time.  The answers will affect my work, my family and all that I am.  It is not enough to sweep out the old without also leaving room for the new.  That is my hope and desire.

Bro. Trey