Some days I go to bed at night wondering if I have actually accomplished anything during the day that was. Today is not one of those day. I woke up early this morning. I got the shopping done for myself for the week, and also for the snacks for our contemporary service at church tomorrow. I went and shared tea with a group of ladies who are over 80 and are members at St. Andrews. They deserve to be honored for their long years on this earth and in this community of faith, and I was honored to be among them.

When I got home from that event, I spent time making some cupcakes and a chicken chilli. I got 4 loads of laundry done and I cleaned up the kitchen.  I reviewed my sermon for the contemporary service and printed the ‘final’ version of it. I even snuck a nap into this afternoon.

It feels good to have checked a number of things off of my “to do” list.

A life in the ministry is one where you spend some days doing nothing more than talking and thinking. It’s hard to judge how much is accomplished on those days. Sometimes my ‘work’ is one of listening – simply being able to hear what another is going through, and perhaps pass on some encouragement to them. In these cases, it is really hard to judge how much time and energy is expended in the work of ministry. That’s the nature of the beast. Sometimes one conversation – which took no more than 20 minutes – can feel like a full day’s hard labour.

Perhaps that is why a day like today, one in which I can check off a number of ‘tasks’ (though, admittedly, not all of them had to do with ministry), feels so good. It’s nice to have something tangible in the midst of a life that is committed to the intangible, the ethereal, the transcendent.

Today I feel accomplished. And blessed. And ready for tomorrow.