Reflection

May 15, 2025

Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony.

- Colossians 3:14

I was recently reading a book called "The Lazy Genius Way: Embrace What Matters, Ditch What Doesn't, and Get Stuff Done" by Kendra Adachi. I don't tend to read a lot of self help books, but in preparation for starting this new chapter in my ministry I wanted some advice on how to faithfully juggle all my new responsibilities without dropping all the various balls on the ground. While I sometimes play an overachiever in public, I know that balance is key so the idea of being both lazy and a multitasking whiz all at once really appealed to me. 

The author actually had lots of good advice, especially for those of us who may have some executive functioning challenges, but one concept in particular really stuck with me. The author emphasized that much of what we do to organize our lives should be focused on how our efforts allow us to better connect with one another. A clean home or a particular organizational scheme isn't about making sure that our lives echo what we see in a magazine or online on social media. The only real value to those things is found in how they help us to better connect with the people and issues that we truly care about. When we focus on allowing for more connection (and worry less about comparing ourselves to others or worry about how things "should be") that's when we have more clarity about what really matters in our lives. 

While I believe in the power of love, I'm not sure I've ever seen it truly lead to perfect harmony as the author of Colossians claims. But I do know that binding us together in love, having us focus on what helps us to better connect with each other and with God, is central to life. Just imagine if we could evaluate all we do - our tasks, our programs, our meetings, our relationships - in terms of how they help to bind us together, to allow for more moments of connection and community building. It might make it easier for us to decide, as individuals and as churches, what to focus more of our time and energy on and help us learn to let go of (and be lazy about) the rest.

In a time when so much around us feels unsettled and chaotic, when we're pulled in a million different directions, it's hard to know where to begin and how to move forward. How can we respond to the many justice issues we see all around us? What are our priorities? What is God calling us to in this time? As I begin this new ministry journey with you I hope to focus on and prioritize deepening connections and emphasizing the role of love in our communities. Even if perfect harmony seems way beyond our reach, how can we center that which at least begins to bind us together? Because the stronger our relationships, the deeper our ties to God and to each other, and the more focused we are on what really matters, the more effective we will be in our ministries and the more joy we will find as we move forward together. I'm looking forward to clothing myself in love alongside all of you!

Peace and Love, 

Rev. Holly R. Jackson