OnFire #279 Squizzeled is Not All Bad

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #279 Squizzeled is Not All Bad
Squizzeled is the word some fishermen on the Bay of Fundy use to describe the appearance of lobster buoys which have been compressed after been driven underwater by the tide. Bay of Fundy tides produce strong currents which drag them down and in many places they only surface at slack tide, when the waters change direction.

I wouldn’t have believed it, but I’ve seen it for myself. The foam buoys start round when they are new, but over time the pressure of the deep water compresses them and they develop wrinkles – squizzeled. I guess the word is a combination of squished and wrinkled.

There are times when the demands and duration of stressful situations leave us feeling squizzeled. We have been submerged for so long that when we finally surface at the other side of a difficult season, we feel like those buoys - pressed in, squished, shrunken.

Our church has called a new senior pastor and he will begin during the last week of July. This is great news and already I can feel a burden lifting. For the last year I’ve been submerged in the details of trying to plug holes in our ministries, and now that our new pastor is coming I can relax a little, which is good, because I passed tired a long time ago and now I’m depleted and weakened. I’m feeling squizzeled.

As I have been thinking about this state I’m in, I see it is not all bad. I am tired, but I sense an opportunity now to remake my routines. I don’t want to fall blindly into some other numbing routine, but rather, I sense a chance to think about the things I need to put back into my life to regain some life balance and build up my spirit.

I plan to add back into my spiritual life the kinds of things I know rejuvenate me. I’ve kept up Bible reading and prayer, but I haven’t been able to journal or take personal spiritual retreats. In the past I have connected with God in powerful ways through these and I plan to add them back to my routine.

I know I need to reengage some of the important people in my life. My family has been understanding, but as I look back, I see that my busyness has risked something with them. Sometimes when we are submerged, people move on without us. I need to reengage them.

I need to reevaluate and reinvent my schedule. What are the important things I want to do? I’ve already talked about putting some spiritual disciplines and family time back in my routine. I need to determine what other major areas I will focus on. I will obviously need to work this out prayerfully and with our deacons and new pastor, but now is the time to consider these things. The hard part will be that some things won’t go back in the schedule and I’ll end up disappointing someone.

So, while squizzeled is uncomfortable, it is not all bad. It presents the opportunity to reevaluate and reconsider. We’ll all face difficult seasons at times, but when we resurface, we have the chance to remake our routines.

I hope this helps. Be onfire.
Troy

OnFire is a bi-weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published May 17, 2012. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com.