Don’t move… until you answer this question

July 18, 2016

“Where am I?”

That question may not come up, for you, as often as it does for me.

For the last 20 years, half of my nights are spent in a rent-a-bed. My ministry activities account for a lot of that travel, but my “off-time” isn’t spent in a recliner: for the last two weeks, I’ve been practicing-what-I-preach (always a good idea for ministry types) with family. Most of my now-‘til-Fall calendar is on-the-road, not in-the-pool: the GPS on my phone tells the story of a man-on-the-run…

It happens for me, frequently: my iPhone is my alarm clock, and the audio is set to “birds,” at a volume that rivals an aviary. Rudely awakened by a noisy flock – always long before sunrise – I have to find the phone, find the screen spot that kills the birds… and then answer the question: “Where am I?”

The path to the bathroom will be illuminated by the answer to that question, and all that will follow. Why am I here? Who’s waiting for me? Am I checking out? How will I be dressed? What do I need to have with me, to accomplish my purpose for the day? Where’s the closest Starbucks? Am I reset to the local time zone, and how soon can I call Cheri to have our first contact for the day?

My “normal” week – apart from the summer reset – puts me in a different city every day, leading sessions for The Master’s Program. Exit the venue around 4:00p, head for the airport, turn in the rental car, get through TSA, fly 500-1000 miles, land, bag check, rental car, drive to hotel, check-in, iron tomorrow’s uniform, check e-mails, hit the pillow around midnight… and set the birds to wake me at 5:00a with their choir of chirps, triggering the question: Where am I?

We’re time-and-space beings: our life is happening by the moment, and in a place. Those certainties can be overlooked in a routine, normal day… but they’re operative, nonetheless. For ourselves – and, for the context within which we live and operate – the whole of life revolves around that clarity.

Think about the last few days, and the concise reports that we’ve processed to figure out what’s going on around us: a truck in Nice; a coup attempt in Turkey; an ambush in Baton Rouge; memorial services in Dallas; Republicans in Cleveland; suspects in custody.

That preposition – “in” – says it all. Pushpins go on today’s map, based on that little word. We see where we are – and, we set the world around us – based on its clarity. Where are you? Your answer: “I’m in _________.” That answer changes everything.

Where are you? I’m in the office. I’m in trouble. I’m in a relationship. I’m in Cleveland. I’m in a meeting. I’m in Halftime. I’m in retirement. I’m in ministry. I’m in process. I’m in recovery. I’m in bed. I’m in a good place. I’m in jail. I’m in transition.

Paul is one of my go-to advisors; we’ve never had a face-to-face meeting, but he sent me a bunch of e-mails 2000 years ago that are more insightful and current than the “breaking news” intrusions my phone features every few minutes. In his letters – the New Testament epistles authored by him – he positioned me on Eternity’s map 85 times – 85 times! – those missives. Where did he find me? Here’s where he says I am: “In Christ.”

Alive in Christ. Co-workers in Christ. Sanctified in Christ. Wise in Christ. Firm in Christ. Reconciled in Christ. Freedom in Christ. Justified in Christ. One in Christ. Faithful in Christ. Hope in Christ. Created in Christ. Promise in Christ. Accomplished in Christ. Holy in Christ. Mature in Christ. Dozens more; he sees me – and, you – where we really are, on the only map that matters.

When your spiritual GPS finds your position – in Christ – the realities surrounding you, the services available to you and the certainty that now defines you prepares you for the ultimate.

Where am I? The only answer that matters: in Christ.

Where are you, today? And… do you realize what that means?

Bob Shank