If It Ain't Broken, Break It!

I had the privilege of teaching a class on creativity last year. I said something that, at the time, I didn't know would be so huge in my life over the summer. So, this is what I told the then 1st year students:

"Remember that what worked for you during your 1st year will not work your 2nd year."

I said this to challenge them to grow to a new level, because while you could grow at a slow pace during your first year and most of the time be ok, during your second year you must accelerate because there are hungry first years right behind you. You simply won't last if you do not grow. Little did I know that this concept would be the battle of my summer for a young minister in his first year of vocational ministry.
This summer was rough for me, and I felt like I hit a wall in ministry. I certainly wasn't used to running into walls I couldn't burst through in short periods of time...nothing usually held me back for very long. But this summer and early fall was different as I felt like I was at a complete standstill in my growth in the Lord and ministry. I even crashed into Pastor Sergio's basement, spilling out how I felt.
While there were several reasons, there is one I'd like to share with you. I came to realize that I was doing what had always worked. Praying at the same depth, preaching with the same fervency, reading at the same pace. And while those things worked for last year, I realized that I subconsciously decided not to go after the greater things. Pastor Thomas tell us staff that we shouldn't wait for something to go bad before we change, but always have enough foresight to see what's ahead and creatively move to the next level before it stops working.
During my first year of YMC, I remember Pastor Chris talking with us and bringing a reality check. He said that we needed to grow at a faster pace because the incoming 1st years were hungry, radical, and on fire. We all felt the healthy pressure to grow not only for our own individual destiny's sake, but for those who were to follow. So together we prayed harder, learned intentionally, and stepped up our vigor to grow. By the end of our first year Pastor Chris commended us for growing where we needed to be, and we held the standard high for the radical 1st years to go after.
Someone once said "If it ain't broken, break it!", and I do agree. I'm thankful for all that God has put in me that has worked, but it wont work forever. I'm evaluating everything in my life with this prospective, because I want to continue to grow. I hate walls, but we will run into the from time to time. And as the late Randy Pausch said, the brick walls aren't there to keep people from getting through, it's to keep the people out who don't want it bad enough.
So excuse me while I go break through some walls -- it's reading time!