Rolling Away the Stone: Finding the Courage to Just Be

For 47 days, I have been walking with the church where I serve toward a season of "Creative Possibility." Together, we have leaned into the work of shifting our habits and creating new ways of connection. But as I sat in a closing reflection group this past Resurrection Sunday, a single question forced me to look at the landscape of my own soul:

"What stone has been rolled away from you during this journey?"

I realized my stone wasn't a lack of vision or a lack of work ethic. My stone was the heavy, jagged weight of "Doing."

The "Clean Plate" Revelation Earlier this year, I set a personal goal to create a "Clean Plate." In my ministry life, I had developed a habit of placing items on my plate that weren't mine to carry. I was the one posting every social media update. I was writing, training, and then showing up to every prayer call not just as a seeker, but as the technical lead—even though I had already trained a brilliant team to do that very work.

I was hovering over the work of others, afraid that if I let go, the structure would collapse. I was so busy protecting the prayer that I forgot to participate in it.

The Sound of the Stone Rolling The victory didn't come in a thunderclap; it came in a quiet observation from one of my technical assistants. She told me recently, "I noticed you haven't been showing up as the tech lead on the calls lately. I said to myself, 'Rev. Carmin trusts us now.'"

When she said those words, I felt the "Stone of Doing" finally roll away.

By trusting the team I had trained, I wasn't just "offloading work." I was honoring their growth and, more importantly, I was making room for my own soul. Because I stopped "doing" the tech, I could finally be in the prayer. Because I empowered new hosts for our groups, I could finally be present in the fellowship.

Resurrection Means "We Live" This past Sunday, my colleague Rev. Patrick reminded us that God’s gift of life is Available, Accessible, Abundant, and Abiding.

I realized that as long as I was trapped behind the stone of "Doing," I couldn't fully access the "Abiding" life. Abiding requires a sacred stillness. It requires us to stop being busy for the sake of busyness and start being still for the sake of Being.

An Invitation for Your Week What "dead weight" are you carrying that belongs to someone else? What have you built that you are now refusing to trust?

The stone has been rolled away not so we can find more work to do, but so we can walk out into the light and simply be the children of God we were created to be. The tomb is empty. Your plate can be, too.