Be
careful then how you live, not as unwise people but as wise, making
the most of the time. (Ephesians
5:15)
Running
in the Halls
Slow
down you move too fast, you’ve got to make the morning last. These
words to the 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin’ Groovy) raced
through my brain on a recent Sunday morning when I was running
through the hallways trying to be several places at one time and keep
up with the pace of all that goes on at FPC with children and adults.
In a world where multi-tasking has become the rule, and speedy
service is the expectation, it’s not easy to slow down. I seldom
order children to stop running in the hallways because I don’t
model it myself.
The
seasons of the liturgical year remind us that there is a rhythm of
life that doesn’t depend on that linear span of time we know as
Chronos. In this season we are reminded to live intentionally, to
slooooow down, breathe deeply, to watch, wait, listen and pay
attention to the Spirit of God at work in our midst so that we might
experience those Kairos moments.
Terry
Chapman, Presbyterian pastor and author of the book Sabbath Pause:
Seven Weeks of Daily Meditations, tells of a Peanuts cartoon in
which Charlie Brown is complaining that life is passing too fast, and
Dr. Lucy responds with “Try slowing down around the corners.”
One
small way I have experienced a slowing down is by praying in color
(or in black & white) a form of prayer that you can explore at
www.prayingincolor.com.
Sybil MacBeth, the author of Praying
in Color,
introduces an active, visual, and meditative way to pray. Active
because you draw your prayers, visual because you see your prayers,
and meditative because you revisit your prayers throughout the day.
You
do not need to be artistic at all to do this. I have found that a
few Sabbath moments spent praying with a pen or marker in hand help
me to slow down, to focus, and to pay attention to God’s working in
and around me.
Dear
God, help us to slow down in this season of Lent, to take Sabbath
moments each day so that we might pay attention and recognize your
grace at work in our lives. Amen.
Cindy
Merten
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