October 2021 News - National Association of Church Facilities Managers

October 2021 NACFM News

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NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF CHURCH FACILITIES MANAGERS | October 2021

In Search of the Balanced Life
MESSAGE FROM NACFM PRESIDENT HOMER CLARK

Balance is something we all think about in one form or another. We consider if our HVAC systems are well balanced. Are the tires on the family car properly balanced? And, of course, everyone wants a well-balanced diet. Also critically important, is my walk with the Lord in need of some attention? In an overview, how balanced are our lives in total?

With the 24 hours in a day we all have (86,400 seconds), how balanced are our lives in these fleeting moments of time? For most of my life, I've been convinced that I'm living a well-balanced existence, responsible, efficient, and productive. As I experience my late 50s, I have painfully discovered that I’m way out of balance in just about all areas! So, how do I redirect the balance and composure of my life?

It is a difficult task to balance so many of the demanding (and important!) areas of life. Here are just a few of the critical items:

Family - Time with my wife, children, parents, and siblings.
Jobs responsibilities - Serving the different ministries in our church, the congregation, and outside groups.
Hobbies - Finding the time to unwind, relax and find mental release.
Community responsibilities - Giving back to our community and helping those in need.
And last, but never least, our walk with Christ, our Lord and Savior.

So, how do we make use of 86,400 seconds each day? How do we "invest" our time in a meaningful way while maintaining balance?

Of course, a huge chunk of time is spent with sleep (28,800 seconds on average). While time with the Lord and attention to our families are critical, suffice it to say, work is becoming more challenging and demanding of our time. Working with less staff, reduced funds, and ever-changing restrictions dealing with health care (COVID) have thrown even more complexity into the mix. Time with the Lord, family care, and general mental stability can suffer.

Some years ago I was blessed to have a very wise mentor. He was a great help in laying out some basic priorities to help balance my life.

The Lord
My Wife
Our Children
My Job
Distant family
My Church
My self-interests

Putting myself after the other priorities has helped with balance and the work of avoiding the "it's all about me" syndrome. If I direct my heart toward the Lord and keep my eyes on others, it's a tremendous help in avoiding those selfish moments in life. Focusing on serving others and staying close to God's word always seems to lift my spirits when overwhelmed.

“My life constantly hangs in the balance, but I will not stop obeying your law. The wicked have set their traps for me along your path, but I will not turn from your commandments.” – Psalm 119: 109-110 (NLT)

In this Psalm, we see that balance has great weight in our lives when the wicked (people and circumstances) are trying to trap us and keep us away from Christ.

“There is a time for everything, a season for every activity under heaven. A time to be born and a time to die. A time to plant and a time to harvest.” – Ecclesiastes 3:1-2 (NLT)

Ecclesiastes is the words of the Teacher, King David's son, who ruled in Jerusalem.
He writes later in Ecclesiastes 3:9-11 (NLT)

“What do people really get for all their hard work? I have thought about this in connection with the various kinds of work God has given people to do. God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God's work from beginning to end.”

Mentors I’ve had along my journey in life have always recommended spending time with God first thing in the morning before the tasks of the day and emergencies capture my time and deplete my energy. Especially when the day falls apart, I’m so glad to have spent those first moments with Jesus.

Balancing your day is something that takes practice, trial and error, and communication with spouse, family, team, bosses and Christ. Planning the next day at the end of the current day, I've found to be the best practice for setting priorities. There is an app called “PAUSE” created by Wild at Heart Ministry. It’s available for Apple or Android devices. It provides 1, 3, 5 and 10-minute "pause" moments with instrumental music and John Eldridge leading the listener in prayer. It’s simple and it helps me refocus on the challenges at hand. I can recommend this for a few moments of peace and focus on God's direction for the day.

I leave you with these final scripture verses.

“Always be joyful. Keep on praying. No matter what happens, always be thankful, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NLT)

Blessings and joy to you all,

Homer Clark
NACFM President

Featured Member:
John Surles- First Baptist Church of Thomasville, Thomasville, GA

For John Surles, having a background in law enforcement and security has been a solid addition to his growing skills as a facilities professional. Add to that his service in the United States Marine Corps (Infantry), and you have an operations person with a penchant for duty and devotion to the task at hand. Of course, John's first devotion and love go to the Lord.

Fire Extinguisher Inspection, Testing and Maintenance

With regular fire extinguisher inspections, testing, and maintenance, you can create a safe and secure environment for everyone who enters your facility. The National Fire Protection Association is your go-to resource to help ensure your fire extinguishers are ready at all times.

Additional fire safety information and much more can be found on the NACFM dedicated resource page, FACILITIES INDUSTRY LINKS. Give this valuable page a visit!