Monday is a hard day for most people; some think that Monday is the hardest day.
As a people, we make a lot of jokes when we are together about being unable to ‘roll out of bed’ easily as Monday begins. More than just the first day in a new week, Monday often symbolizes the end of the time of weekend rest and the return towards a life of over-crowding and over-working. Often this is not an intentional choice that we make, though. I don’t wake up on Monday morning and think, “I hope that today I over-work myself and am totally exhausted both mentally and physically at dinner time.” But sometimes my choices and my behavior would say that I am seeking, and that I desire, overwork.
And I am not the only person struggling with this attitude or choice today.
As you may have discovered recently if you’ve been following my pastoral thoughts, the works of Thomas Merton have been in the front of my mind for some time now. I believe that Thomas offers the church some much needed guidance and counsel as we leave behind the covid-quarantine and live again into God’s mission for us and for the larger church. Today I offer you these words:
There is a pervasive form of contemporary violence to which the idealist most easily succumbs. . . overwork. The rush and pressure of modern life are a form, perhaps the most common form, of its innate violence. To allow oneself to be carried away by a multitude of conflicting concerns, to surrender to too many demands, to commit oneself to too many projects, to want to help everyone in everything, is to succumb to violence. This frenzy. . . Neutralizes our work for peace. It destroys our own inner capacity for peace. It destroys the fruitfulness of our own work, because it kills the root of inner wisdom which makes work fruitful.
If you find yourself agreeing with Merton’s words then I wonder what would it look like to lay aside the temptation to be busy and press too hard in life? What would happen in your morning if you just sat with God and God’s word, even for just a quiet moment, and let that speak to you and guide you through the busyness that is awaiting you after you finish reading this thought?
The way that I dealt with this temptation today was to take Luna for a long, very hot, walk. The heat zapped much of her strength and passion early on as we circled the church to warm-up. Only about fifteen minutes into our walking time, I noticed that she was not pulling so hard. This meant that I was sale to head down Plains Church Road with her. Her stride was smooth and she was in rhythm. As she walked a few feet in front of me, I found space to just listen to the world around me on Plains Church Road and Hope Road. I found space to dwell with God. . . And God said nothing to me. We just walked side by side.
When I returned home very sweaty and tired, my list of things to do was still there and still growing. I was 45 minutes behind schedule for the morning. But for a briefest of time, they did not matter. I knew that each of these needs sought my attention, and I would give them what they sought in the right order, but I left the frenzy go and my Monday started off differently.
I wonder what might happen for us as the church if we lived in the same way?
Blessings
Rev. Derek
No comments:
Post a Comment