Clear Water
It’s 2:11 in the morning, April 5, 2020 and stepping outside it’s the same now as it was just-around-ten yesterday evening - eerily quiet. Except for the distant hum of an industrial generator and the waterfall in our pond - nothing. Absolutely. Nothing. And it’s glorious! I’ve had this writing bouncing around in my head for weeks since the “stay at home” order was announced for Northampton County, Pa. I’ve wanted to address a concern in the midst of the Covid-19 disruption. I know many people are anxious over many things - even before the pandemic; we are a very worried-centered culture.
We’ve been wrestled to a halt by genetic material measured in nanometers, that’s one-billionth of a meter! The world is forced to rest - ceasing from its lust for faster, better, greater. And I’m concerned we won’t learn one dang thing about the inhuman pace we’ve been keeping for far too long.
A few years ago my wife and I changed the rhythm of our lives, just a wee bit. It came at a great cost for me, but it was extremely necessary and life-altering. We didn’t have to make the change, it wasn’t health-based. But in the end, it was. We decided to return to our ancient, human roots of Sabbath. Taking one, 24-hour period of time to cease from all work, paid or unpaid. We set boundaries so we wouldn’t become legalistic and miss the positive impact Sabbath is supposed to have. We play, love, cook, read, walk, talk, nap, breathe in deeply, love nature, engage creation, fellowship with friends, worship, sing, dance, create and do just about anything restorative we can during our Sabbath. We’ve now come to a point where instead of the day off being a desperate resting from our work, the six days of work are born out of our rest. And all seven are oh-so-much more glorious! I can’t even tell you how it’s revolutionized our vacations!
What if every so often the entire population just shut down, pulling the plug on the rat race machine and taking a huge, deep breath?
Some are reporting the positive impact this virus-induced ceasing is having on nature. My wife told me about the lowered seismic noise our screeching-to-a-halt has fostered. Waters are clearer. The air is cleaner. I bet fish are happier! What if once or twice a month, or dare I suggest once a week, everything just shut down? How could life and this planet benefit? What if you each decided to take one day a week - pick one, I really don’t care which, and ceased all work, all striving, devoting the hours to honoring life - all life - starting with yours? How could your living be impacted?
I speak from personal experience, we’re slaves to the work, work, work, performance-driven world and we’re missing out on so much! My concern is this, nothing will change. Nothing! When the virus is under control, the pattern of the world we’ve carved for ourselves will take center stage and we’ll be subject to our own idolatrous futility, yet again, like a dog returning to its vomit. But I won’t and you don’t have to, either.
I’ve written a lot about the benefits of Sabbath. You can do a search of my blogs and read some more. I am praying many eyes and hearts will be open as we battle against Covid-19. I’m praying people will wake up from their drive for better, faster, stronger and realize there’s a Sabbath-sized hole in their lives and it’s killing us.