The church building required refurbishing. Multiple decades had aged it, and the minimal remodeling spoke of bygone eras. Even worse, the entrance was on the opposite side of the parking lot, well hidden to first time visitors. Many people drove in, saw no entrance, and drove right out. So we embarked on a major project: cut into a retaining wall, install steps, remove vegetation, craft a new entrance by the parking, and paint the entire interior.
One of our leaders, an Air Force officer, led the painting crew, and I struggled to say nothing as I saw him try to cut the paint in between the wall and ceiling. A straight line brings beauty, a crooked line brings humor, and this leaned to the latter.
“Dave, set the brush and let the bristles work” merely bewildered him. I explained that to support myself when starting an earlier church, I’d worked as a painting contractor, and could give him a tip. I demonstrated how to lightly load the brush with paint, to make a brief stroke in the direction you want to paint but below the line, which sets the bristles, then to steadily move the brush in a straight line at the intersection.
Amazed, he quickly shared that with the rest of the crew, and we ended up with a job of beauty. But you didn’t come to Unconventional for a painting lesson, so here’s the application. Just like we need to set the bristles of our brush before painting, we also need to set our spirit before facing the day.
No, not necessarily an hour of quiet time, or deep study of God’s word. I’ll leave the how’s to you. But do you purposefully “set your spirit” each day? Do you align yourself with God? David (not my friend above but the king of Israel), knew that importance, “In the morning, O LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation” (Psalm 5:3).
David knew to set his spirit each day, to connect with God, and how that brought an expectation of God’s activity in his activities.
A variety of methods have worked for me. At my last school, riding the bike in to work gave a chance to not just pray for safety, but to reconnect with God, to reorient myself with him. Once I sang the old song, “He’s got the whole world in his hands,” but I changed the object. “The sale of our house” to “teaching my students” to every concern I could think of. By the time I arrived, my spirit was calmed and ready. Now, in retirement, as I grab my cup of coffee and move to peruse the news, I intentionally say, “Good morning Lord. May I be aware of you today. May I honor you today.”
Kick Starting the Application
Do you see value in intentionally setting your spirit each day? Do you spiritually kick start each morning? If not, why? What different ways have you tried? Which work best for you? Which haven’t worked well?
If you’re not now regular with this, would you commit to one week of intentionally and early bringing God more closely into the activities of your day?