Michael Tolosa

I haven’t struggled much with writer’s block. Maybe in school I did. When I was forced to write against my will. But writing professionally and personally has always been a joy for me and a very fluid process.

I’ve been writing since the seventh grade (1987) when I took a Creative Writing class in secondary school. The first long piece of fiction I ever wrote was a spoof of Batman (a comic character I was a huge fan of at the time). My class published these stories in small, individual blank books that I got to design the cover of and paste type-written pages in. There was something about having a “published” book that filled me with great satisfaction and a desire for more.

In junior high, I spent one entire year writing a poem everyday. They were mostly all the same rhyming scheme — ABCB — and were usually about the latest classmate I had a crush on. I thought one day I would write songs in a band.

In high school, I started writing about my actual life, jotting down details about events I didn’t want to forget. I also joined the student newspaper staff and became a journalist.

My focus shifted to photography and video production in college, but I never stopped taking notes about story ideas I would one day flesh out and complete. I still have those notes — a huge well of story ideas from which to draw in the future. I also wrote occasional features and reviews for the newspaper, so writing never left me.

When I got into the workforce, I found that I needed a tool to improve and increase the speed of my writing. Online journals — precursors to blogs — were hot around 2000, so I created a LiveJournal that I updated almost everyday.

After the “dot bomb” in 2001, I found myself unemployed for almost a year and entertained myself with writing. I eventually launched a blog — sometimes multiple blogs on various topics that interested me — and this prepared me for future employment as an online content manager and blogger for several well-known companies.

I had a job where I blogged about computers and electronics for an online shopping website. Another job — probably my favorite — had me writing about dating and relationships (the research was quite enjoyable). In fact, blogging has been a part of every job I’ve had since 2007. Right now, I blog about military technology for a defense contractor in the Washington, DC area — among my other duties. Writing about bomb disposal robots in Afghanistan isn’t as interesting as writing about online dating, but it’s pretty close.

So, I write everyday in some capacity. I’m lucky that writing is part of my 9-to-5 job. I’m forced to write three blog posts a week — writer’s block or not. If I need ideas or inspiration for writing these, I check out industry media outlets or blogs to find out what’s hot in the military community right now. Then I figure out how one of our products relates.

Even if I didn’t write professionally, I would still need a writing outlet, whether it’s a personal blog or a novel. I’ve already done poetry, journalism, and blogging. Screenwriting, it seems, is the next step for me.

I was just contemplating the concept of busyness, when my friend shared this story with me. All of my stress is self-imposed. I willingly fill my life with events, projects, and obligations – which I would soooo like to do and put on my reputation resume. I’m addicted to work (both personal and professional), because I tend to find my significance in my accomplishments. What if I found my significance elsewhere? Like in the status I’ve been given in Christ? How much more time would I have, and how much easier would life be, if I didn’t have so much to *do*? For the next two months, I’m going to try and say “no” to every event invitation, not sign up for any new classes, not take on any new projects – and see how much happier I am. Can I really find happiness in accomplishing nothing? I’ll check back in after the election.

To Christians, ministries are like iPhones – every Christian’s gotta have one! Surely, to be truly spiritual, every Christian must have their own personal ministry that they can launch, promote and run like a small business! (Don’t forget your tax-free status!) Preferably this ministry will coincide nicely with your personal interests.

Amy would rather play music than do her homework, so she needs to form a Christian band! Jackie enjoys gorging herself on chocolates, so she needs to start a Christian chocolate lovers home group! Joe likes drinking and picking up chicks, so he needs to launch a Christian dating ministry! These are the worlds familiar to them. These are the people they’re being “called” to reach. Right?

God certainly wouldn’t punish these enthusiastic folks by calling them to give up their passions, leave their comfortable lives, or simply live a simple, obscure life. God wants us to be happy – and famous! God wants us to have successful ministries!

What are ministries? Why are we concerned with having them? Jesus and the apostles didn’t emphasize the need for every Christian to have a personal, tax-exempt ministry relevant to their culture. He gave us very simple directives… Love God, love your neighbor, preach the Gospel, and make disciples. These should be the personal “ministries” of every Christian.

Don’t know what ministry God is calling you to? You don’t need to wait on the leading of the Holy Spirit to know that God is calling you to love Him, love your neighbor, preach the Gospel, and make disciples. Jesus was clear about all of those things. He calls all Christians to do these.

I don’t know about you, but I barely have enough time to do any one of these things – much less all of them. Why would I need to spend what free time I have creating more work (read: ministry) each day?

If you and I focused on loving God with all our heart, soul, and mind, we wouldn’t have time for ministry. If we loved our neighbors as ourselves, our calendars would already be full.

Who do we spend the majority of our time with? Where is the bulk of our energy spent? If the answer is the Church or other Christians, then our priorities are off.

You don’t serve Christ by separating yourselves into Christian ministries and engaging the world from the perch of a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, or from within the confines of an isolated church building or home group (geographically in the community, but practically absent & non-existent). You serve Christ by serving your neighbors – both the wealthy neighbors (aka big donors!) and the “least of these” (Matt 25:40).

What is your personal ministry? Is it based around a personal interest? Is your dedication to that particular interest distracting you from fulfilling God’s command to love Him, love your neighbors, preach the Gospel, and make disciples?

If you’re more concerned with how much money your ministry raises, how many people attend your meetings, how well your marketing efforts are going, or how fulfilled your ministry makes you… maybe it’s time to ditch your ministry.

If you’ve never met your next-door neighbor, invited them over for dinner, or planned a neighborhood block party… maybe it’s time to ditch your ministry.

If you don’t spend time every single day reading the Bible and praying to God, learning more about Him, and worshiping Him… maybe it’s time to ditch your ministry.

Quit using your ministry as an excuse to disengage from the world and from God. Be ready everyday to be interrupted by an opportunity to serve or get to know your neighbors, or to go to God in prayer. Life already has too many distractions. Don’t get caught up in the logistics of “ministry.”