If there is any obstacle to rest, it's being over-subscribed. Being yes-people. Yes to events, yes to newsletters, yes to fundraisers, yes to opportunities, yes to bargains. It's the way to be connected, in-the-loop and in-the-know.
It's enough just to keep up.
At some point, we actually have to become no-people in order to say a greater Yes.
But a great YES to what? Less accountability? Less visibility? Less information and knowledge?
Before we left for our sabbatical in Alberta, we cancelled our home phone line, and spent time going through all of the email we receive. Bit by bit, we weeded out newsletters and ads. Don't even ask how all those things started piling into our inboxes.
Weeding out the unwanted email looks like this: open up the newsletter which you receive but would rather not read. Scroll to the bottom and click "Unsubscribe." Done. No more daily deals, no more words of the day, no more daily interest columns or Pinterest alerts. At least for now. And no more of the newsletters of which I can't even recall the names anymore.
What a relief. All that space in my inbox, all that time to spend on something else.
And saying no to events. We were invited to a very good event not long ago. It was something we believed in and were curious about, but knew that this time of rest is precious. We don't want to squander our evenings. So we said no. What a strange freedom. Having been trained by expectations to participate and to attend events out of a sense of duty, simply side-stepping an event or invitation feels like we're absconding.
But it is in the interest of something greater. Something that's eluded when attention is directed toward the things at the periphery -- at least, which should be at the periphery, if not in the trash.
Instead of trying to manage overflowing inboxes, we've been receiving and listening to Scripture. Saying yes not to less accountability, but yes to the Word.
More time and more mental space permits long sessions of listening. We hear the Word in a way we sometimes miss when we read it silently. The word was meant to be read this way - aloud and in the company of others. We subscribe to a new stream of words, but this time with no gimmicks or sales pitches. This time its for a way of life, the way of wisdom.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer - well before the days of iTunes Audio Bible - said it this way, in a perfectly relevant way for our time:
The Word of Scripture should never stop sounding in your ears and working in you all day long, just like the words of someone you love... Accept the Word of Scripture and ponder it in your heart, as Mary did. That is all... Do not ask "How shall I pass this on?" but "What does it say to me?" Then ponder the Word long in your heart until it has gone right into you and taken possession of you.
Life Together
3 steps to making this transition for yourself:
1) Unsubscribe to whatever you don't want to don't need to read.
2) Purchase a version of an audio Bible OR intentionally choose another activity that is truly life-giving.
3) Do it! And Keep it up.
See what happens and enjoy the rest that comes your way.
No comments:
Post a Comment