CLEAR THE FOG - SYDNEY CLAYTON

Sydney Clayton

clear the fog

As leaders, our teams look to us for vision, direction, guidance, and encouragement. We feel the burden to lead with purpose. Often, we go to God asking and waiting for the “blueprints” for the next big mission we believe we are supposed to lead our team or our church towards. Sometimes it seems as if the Holy Spirit downloads that vision and purpose without question, allowing us to easily submit to His plans as He propels us forward. However, there are other times we feel the piercing silence that accompanies the lack of vision. We have all experienced clarity, and on the other extreme, the dense fog of leadership that settles in as we are waiting upon clear direction from God.

At times, I find myself straining so hard to see the next thing for our church, that I can easily miss what God has for me personally in the here and now. However, whenever I am able to still myself long enough to hear His whisper amongst the chaos, it’s clear He has abundantly more than I can ask or imagine.

Take for example Jesus’ rhythm of life. First, He retreated from the crowds to commune with His heavenly Father (Luke 5:16, Luke 6:12), then he taught and encouraged his disciples and followers (Luke 6:13), and then finally healed and redeemed the lost (Luke 4:40). Repeatedly I see Him cycle through this pattern again and again, but always retreating back to the Father (Mark 1:35).

In light of His rhythms, let’s examine our own. Do our habits draw us nearer to God? Do they leave room for Him to reign in our lives? Do we give Jesus our first fruits of each day, or do we squeeze him in as an afterthought? Do we press into one area of His rhythms and abandon the other two? Are we really good at loving our neighbor, but hold a longstanding grudge with an acquaintance we see every Sunday? Where might the Holy Spirit be convicting each of us to shift our daily practices to be more like Christ? RHYTHMS WITH GOD Where is God drawing you deeper in relationship with Him? Perhaps He is calling you to dive deeper in the scriptures, fasting, or trusting Him with your finances. I experienced this first hand recently. This Spring I found myself reflecting on Jesus’ words “Who do you say I am?” I began to list out who I believed Jesus to be. I wrote down words like “friend, counselor, shepherd...” all titles that felt like a reflection of a parallel posture--a relationship of two siting side by side. Then the Holy Spirit directed me to flip the question. I took time to ponder what was missing. Suddenly it was glaringly apparent. The word leader. Leader was missing. I saw Jesus as my friend and companion, but not as the one I bowed my knee to each day. I was letting him come along with me, but not lead me. Immediately I repented and asked Him to show me where I was not trusting him to lead me, where I needed to submit to His authority in my life. One area He quickly pinpointed was our finances. I was still carrying the burden of finances even though He had been so faithful month after month, year after year to abundantly bless us. He wanted to free me of a burden that I didn’t need to carry.

RHYTHMS WITH EACH OTHER Where is our Father encouraging you to press deeper into Christian community? Maybe He is nudging you to start a small group, volunteer on the set-up team at church, or link arms with other church leaders in the city. There are so many in our church body that just need encouragement. It may be for a season, or it may be a new friendship. For me, this fall, it’s an 8 week study of a book with some young moms in our church. It’s an opportunity to capitalize on face-to-face time with them weekly, pray over them, encourage them, equip them and just listen. It doesn’t have to be a grand gesture, it can be simple. The important thing is that it is obedient. Obedience to the call God is asking you to answer in your faith community.

RHYTHMS WITH THE LOST Where has God positioned you to be love and light in a broken world? Possibly it’s the local elementary school, your work, your neighborhood, or the coffee shop you frequent. I am often inspired by the teachers I know who are working in the public school system. They are laser-focused on their mission. They live daily to love the kids in front of them well, to encourage their families, and to be a light in the school for other faculty and staff. They don’t go in ill-equipped, but they are intentional in prayer as they invite others to join them in praying over their school year. Or, I’m reminded of my friends who have immersed themselves in local refugee communities to love and serve in the name of Jesus. They have said "yes" to the call to love many who are lost, abandoned and lonely. They are serving as the hands and feet of Jesus in a broken world.

As we submit to our Father in a similar three-part rhythm as Jesus modeled, drawing near to the Father, pressing into our faith communities, and wading into a hurting world, He will guide and fill us. It is out of the over-flow of our joyful submission, that fresh vision to lead others will arise. We are only capable of leading others where we have first traveled ourselves. So, if this last season of leadership has left you feeling disoriented by the fog of leadership, then take a breath in the silence, step into the rhythms of Jesus’ life, and patiently wait to see how God will give you His heart to lead those around you.

Sydney is a disciple, wife, and mom to 3 young boys. Along with her husband Dave, she planted and helps lead Ethos Church, a young, urban church in Nashville, TN that is passionate about reaching the lost, making disciples, and releasing ordinary people to plant churches all over the world. In addition, she is an adjunct college professor with a doctorate in Physical Therapy, and enjoys training disciple makers in a variety of contexts. Sydney is especially passionate about fostering her sons’ spiritual development and equipping a new generation of women to live as disciple-makers in all of the places where they live, work, and play. Sydney and Dave will also be leading an important breakout during SpireConference: "Discipling Your Family While Leading in Ministry."