In the past days I have been on a few Zoom calls and some of what I see for the next season has been pulled on. I thought it might be of some value to put it down here, some of which in bits and pieces I have shared before. It needs of course to be weighed and if there is a projection on my part of expectations those will colour what I write. Prayer and revelation is not here to give us what we expect but what we need to enable participate in any forward God movement. Finally any sight has to be supplemented by sight from others.
In the first few days of January it became clear to us that 2020 was not going to be a year that could be planned out. It would be a disrupted year, the important part was that we could not plan as per normal but would have to respond as the disruptions occurred. For many this has been a painful year and I do not write in any way to diminish that experience; we weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice. I acknowledge the diversity of experiences but also want to give a focus to push against the hope of those who are simply waiting for things to return to normal. God makes everything beautiful in its time and we have to discover what it is that God is beautifying.
It is fairly self-evident that there is a RESET taking place. The concept of a reboot is vital for many sectors, and the use now of the term ‘essential workers’ has been a redemptive and perceptive phrase. I suspect it will soon disappear from the active vocabulary as a measure of recovery comes. Crisis has value if we change… if not!!
There will be a bouncing back… it is OK to go with it to a measure, but the focus has to remain on the reset. However as the bouncing back is heralded (2021?) we should not get carried away. The reset has to go much deeper that a temporary change (everything online) and then back to a thank God here comes the normal!
For those who are seeking to find what God has in this season, as opposed to waiting for this season to end, it is not so much a reboot but a reset. The vision might need to be tweaked but the vision is the vision. A refocus might be required, but it is essentially about resetting. As in many sports there comes a point that the team needs to be reset in order to achieve the desired outcome. Perhaps the format of the team, or new plays need to be introduced. We are now in a period of reset and even when a measure of recovery comes, even if we might be able to go with it to some extent, the important element remains that the reset needs to be completed.
There is a 2 year window to push through this reset, ideally if it can be done in 18 months the better. In 2022 – I do not suspect at the beginning – I see global elements of crises appearing that will bust open the cracks. COVID-19 is serious but is also a sign of what is to come, and is signalling to us now that there is a period of time in which we can get ready for this.
The reset is to check alignments. There are alignments from the past season that will quickly prove to be energy sapping for the next. An important element to avoid in this season is filling all the space. There are also alignments that have become loose that need tightening up. However, we approach it the issue of ALIGNMENTS is key in this reset.
Also get ready to change direction. There will likely be for a number of people the sudden openness of new outlets that they have skirted around the edges of before. They will come with a fresh angle / approach and then open up.
The favour of God is going to be with those who are not giving themselves to protect the structures / institutions but invest in the people. This might well mean embracing what might seem a smaller influence, but invest small and deep and there will both be longer lasting results and also protection into the phase that opens in 2022.
At the same time God is at work not simply with ‘me / us’. We are not at the centre. We can flow with what God is doing, but the future is not being shaped for us as individuals. So I suggest that there are people now who are being loosened up from their former concepts that only got them thus far. The loosening will mean fresh sight to those people and also fresh space for new connections. There are many hubs being shaped at this time… a hidden few here and a hidden few there.
Thanks Martin, I get this on a gut, spiritual level and maybe prepared for it in many ways for a good while-not alone there. It is in the practical that I have felt the shortfall and seem to lack the sight. I returned to the building trade a couple of years ago and have worked alone for most of that time. It has taken its toll as building anything is not really a solo occupation. So alignments seems crucial to me and shared sight. The building industry can/could be such a vehicle of love, justice- a literal re-building of walls if you like- many metaphors hidden in construction! There are many layers of ideas and thoughts over the last years that seemed good, but I’m not sure now what different should look like in this industry. I can say for me that fresh sight is needed.
Absolutely connect to this Martin – so glad to have got sight and so grateful for everything you have stood for – to get to this place. I can’t begin to tell you how much my world has been shaken up and believe wholeheartedly with the reset and the focus on people NOT structures so key – helps so much to hear from others as we seek to serve the communities we live and are a part. The positioning bit is really interesting and have many exciting stories of small gatherings, think tanks, with none of us having the road map and all navigating our way through. Be great connect with you soon ……love to Gayle….. Nicky
I just finished a conversation with a friend. I told her it feels like we are all standing in a line, socially distanced, but waiting for someone to tells us what to do next, give us permission to move. I said we need to leave the line up and get on with what is needed. She has dreamed of building a sustainable home for 30 years with a group of people but fears that is now slipping away. So I shared my next hope of creating a community that regenerates land while building affordable net positive homes. She hesitates but recognizes the moment calls for a change. It is a time for new visions, big visions and intense practicality. I like your thought on going small and deep, investing in people. Yes, if I retire now to pursue this vision my breadth of impact is diminished, the project seems small really. But if we all invest in the arks, any vehicle to get humans and other species through climate chaos, that we can and are passionate to create then we change the world. I assure you that the folks who look to expand the current situation and profit from it are dreaming very big dreams. So significant visions, big in meaning, very practical and invest in people, other species and the land itself. It’s an exciting moment.
Just listened to an economist talk about the Canadian economy and its post-covid (will there be a post-covid?) recovery. She emphasized 3 upcoming phases that will all look different. Phase 1, the immediate recovery as people go back to work. Looks pretty good. Phase 2, a whole raft of bankruptcies kick in and structural stresses as the pandemic fallout goes deeper into the economy. This may prove inflationary in some places due to the historically low interest rates. And then 2-3 years out (there’s that 2 year window!) as more structural stresses start to bring down the global economic order, which has always been a bit fragile. So that’s her view – initially, some relief post-pandemic followed by more local and national stress due to losses suffered during the pandemic that will demand some restructuring. Which then leads to the broader and more global restructurings.
So no real back to normal. We have a pre-covid world and a post-covid world. They may resemble aspects of one another but will be significantly different. Now is the moment to choose what those differences will be and how positive they will be for the majority of human beings, other species and the planet.
Phenomenally helpful analysis from the economist. The process fits together really well, and your ‘pre-COVID’, ‘post-COVID’ world statement is sobering.
Should you share the name of the podcast please?