As we reviewed a new idea, the obvious question was put on the table. Why have you waited so long? Is there a reason this good idea did not show up earlier? What roadblock prevented you from articulating the answer to the problem we have been struggling with for some time?
Every question that I faced is a good one. Candidly, I do not have any answers. I do not know. I cannot explain the context or the response. The timing, awareness, and action of our proposal came when we knew. It was as if we were sailors. Metaphorically, “we put in at Syracuse for three days and then went up the coast to Rhegium. Two days later, with the wind out of the south, we sailed into the Bay of Naples.” (Acts 28.12, 13) There was an opportunity. We recognized it and sailed on the prevailing wind. It was the right time.
Having struggled with the question for some time, I have no particular insight on its origin. It happened as it did. It occurred because we were open and the awareness of a large group of people. It was born in a simple moment.
A statement, a question. “I do not get it. What am I missing”
It was a question I had been trying to answer. It was the unspoken obvious face I thought everyone knew. As much as I tried to focus the larger community on the goal (guiding document), the need was not understood or accepted. When someone asked, “what is missing”, I let go of my attempts to manage the outcome. I answered the question asked.
I actually answered the question in three different forums. In each, those interested in the answer grew. One individual was present each time. By the time the third round of questions came, he understood the answer and helped others focus on the keys within the story. The story went from being my story to our story. It is a model that has repeated itself since. Filling a need is easier that creating a void.
