Into the Quietness :: Breaking from Blogging, Tweeting, and such…

Hey friends –

For those of you who follow this blog regularly, sorry I’ve been so inconsistent of late.

“There is a time for everything; a season for every activity under heaven,” says the wise writer of Ecclesiastes (Ecc 3:1).  At the beginning of this year I felt a very distinct call to lift up my voice a bit more – most notably by blogging consistently.  It was a fun season and I enjoyed it immensely.

Lately, however, I feel Jesus pulling me in another direction – into a season of quietness.  That will mean a break from blogging and tweeting at least for the summer.  I think that I will be resuming in the fall.  I’ll try to keep you updated on that.

Though I can’t be sure of all the reasons why the Lord wants this from me, there are some that I am clear on:

1) We have another baby coming this summer.  Arndt Baby #4 is scheduled to arrive sometime in July.  I think the next few months will be well spent enjoying Mandi and The Three (Ethan, Gabe, and Bella) and getting ready to have the equilibrium of our family blessedly upset (yet again :))

2) We’re heading into another ministry year.  Our “ministry year” runs from September to May roughly.  This past year was a truly marvelous year of growth at Bloom.  There is more – much more – on the horizon for us as a community as we head into this next year, and I think the next few months will be well spent listening to Jesus about that.

3) I personally need to “let the land rest” (that is, me).  I do think that we in ministry are too prone to forget that Jesus wants to serve and minister life to us – washing our feet, as it were – not just in fits and starts but in seasons.  I think that the next few months will be well spent letting Jesus minister to me in a season of reverent, adoring quietude.

And lastly…

4) I need to re-evaluate the nature and purpose of my presence in the world of social media.  Social media – like any “media” – can be and often is a force for great good.  It can also be a “haunt of jackals” – a place of subtle competition, backscratching, politicking, and posturing.  For Andrew at least, it takes a lot of spiritual discipline to stay thoughtful about what I’m saying, why I’m saying it, and why I’m saying it now.  And so, with everything else that’s going on, it seems wise for me to “step off” for a time, “find the center” again, as it were, and re-evaluate the nature and purpose of my presence in the world of social media.

That will mean two things:

• I’ll be shutting down my Twitter account (for at least the summer) tonight
• I’ll be taking a break from blogging (at least for the summer, with the possible exception of some occasional updates) starting today

In the meantime, I’ll still be on FB (hopefully in a much more limited way) and of course you can get ahold of me via email (andrew@bloomchurchdenver.com).  And as always we post audio of our weekly teachings at Bloom over at bloomchurchdenver.com.  So you’re welcome to follow what’s going on in my noggin over there.

That’s that.  Can’t tell you how appreciative I am for all of you who follow any of the inanities and moderately incoherent ramblings I put out 🙂  Please do, if and when you think of me, pray that this summer turns into a wonderful season of family, quietude, and clarity for me…

Thanks, much love, and grace to you this summer.

See you in the fall!

Andrew