by Lt. Zach Zumwalt
I’m a pretty organized person. I meticulously organize my clothes, books and kitchen—practically everything I own has its place. I tend to organize my schedule in the same way: a very specific, timely manner. I still carry a paper calendar on which I write down hour by hour what I should be doing. Sometimes this works wonders! As an officer, it keeps me on track, helps me achieve goals and allows me to get reports done on time. At other times though, my tight schedule becomes the greatest enemy to my ministry.
You see, I often schedule my whole day so thoroughly that it doesn’t leave room for what I like to call “holy interruptions.” These are God-ordained moments that call on my pastoral capabilities or my personal relationship with God. A holy interruption can be an employee who is having a really rough time at home. It might be running into someone at the grocery store when I just dashed in to pick up one thing and needed to be on my way.
In these holy interruptions God begins to speak to me. A distraught employee poses an opportunity for prayer. A grocery store run becomes a catch-up chat and invitation to worship on Sunday.
I have to admit sometimes these holy interruptions don’t have me jumping for joy as they interfere with all my scheduled responsibilities. But if I stay in that mind frame, I can miss opportunities for ministry that truly make an impact in someone’s life. I could miss an opportunity to lead someone to Jesus. My prayer is that I, and every officer, would be open to a holy interruption and make it a ministry opportunity.
