Pastoral Thought--August 19

I was reading an article this morning by Matt Bloom entitled, “A Commitment to Personal Rituals can Sustain Clergy, even During a Pandemic” that I wanted to share with you this morning. The full text can be accessed at:

 https://faithandleadership.com/matt-bloom-commitment-personal-rituals-can-sustain-clergy-even-during-pandemic 

In this article, Matt begins by stating the obvious to the reader: we are living in a hard time that is filled with anxiety, He is careful not to make any judgments about those anxieties. Instead, they are simply affirmed. After he unpacks that idea, then Matt offers the reader some practices to help address the anxiety in which we live and work in. 

Whether you are thinking about the covid-19 outbreak, the state of the economy, or the upcoming election, there is plenty in our lives that can foster anxiety. There are also issues that I am leaving out which cause anxiety. . . And as you know, once anxiety begins to take root in our minds, it is hard to root out completely. For some it takes a long period of time. Others need help to root, and address, those anxieties.

While we know as Christians that there are many positive things, or disciplines, or moments, that we can think and dwell upon, those anxiety seem to occupy a large majority of our time. They keep us up at night. They rob us of an appetite. They can strip away our faith which felt so strong a few months ago. They can make us doubt almost everything in in our lives. Then once the doubts begin to surface, the cycle becomes harder to break. 

As a way to begin addressing this, Matt offers this following activity that I want to invite you to consider. He wrote. . .  

"Building solid ground continues by engaging in at least one joyful practice on a regular basis. Joyful practices foster positive, peaceful, hopeful thoughts and feelings. Examples include centering prayer, lectio divina, hymn singing, the reading of beautiful poems, walking meditation, listening to hopeful music and jubilant dance. . . . Even five minutes of a joyful practice each day will produce meaningful benefits over time."

I hope you can find some time today to try a joyful practice even as doubt, anxiety, and fear also could be an option for your day.

Blessings

Rev. Derek