Rainy Sabbath
A small respite between activities.
I need to breathe
Ethics Series, Weddings, Funerals, Sermons, Studies, Vision, Leadership, Counseling, Budget Season, e-mails, board meetings, writing projects - these are all good, but the cumulative effect is...
I need to breathe
I drive north in the afternoon traffic, beating rush hour by a breath. Death Cab, Cold Play, and some 60's stuff perform until north of Mt. Vernon. Then it's worship music, the kind hip Christians, and emergent Christians don't like. Though I know that the cool people get wry smiles when they hear music like this, I'm not cool. So Rich Mullins songs about peace, and some worship band I met from Phoenix singing about God's trustworthiness, with a little Sufjan thrown in, and some other stuff by artists I don't know - these all work for me, remind me that God is good, and that serving Him is meaningful.
I take a breath.
The words wash over me all the way to the writing cabin.
Dinner, made by my hands: grilled onions and mushrooms, spinach with garlic, beef, and a glass of milk.
Clouds gather.
I eat, pondering the fullness of the week - Zechariah, and the encounters of Sunday; last night's wonderful time in our summer ethics series (more later); a breakfast meeting today with old friends to prepare for a funeral this Saturday (his mother passed away); wedding preparations for Saturday night; the realization that life marches on, that the days are growing shorter. That it's good, very good, to be alive.
It's raining.
Bach displaces the worship music -- err, not really. A change of genre yes, but still worship.
"Welcome rain. Wash over me."
I'm breathing again.
Home tomorrow to begin a very full weekend.
"thank you God, for the gift of Sabbath"
posted by Richard Dahlstrom @ 8:54 PM
6 Comments:
I've been listening to a lot of Rich Mullins over the last 3 days. Several years back his music and I were constant companions. I'm grateful to reconnect with him again. I sometimes wonder who he was, what he might have created had he not departed this earth so early.
and you Roy (if you're the Roy I think you are) have been a rich gift these past days! Thanks for your honesty and grace
yeah, same Roy and thanks for your kind words :)
as I exit a season of deep breathing (travel, self reflection, community connection) nights like last night at the ethics discussion, podcasts of campolo and moltmann, books by kierkegaard and barth, blogs such as burnside and front porch republic have provided that mind and soul work necessary for life; they have been the kindling for asking hard questions...thank you for being a part of both sabbath rest and weekday work.
and i'm a bit jealous you found rain!
Just what I needed to hear. Thank you.
This really hit the heart. sounds like a great sabbath. btw I love death cab... coldplay not so much, lol.
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