In chapter 1, Feinberg writes, "All too often I find myself tempted to live a distracted life. You know the kind--the one where, within the busyness of life, you still manage to perform the stand-up, sit-down, clap, clap, clap or regular church attendance; drop a check in the offering plate; hope for a new nugget of knowledge, understanding or insight in the weekly sermon; and check off a random, albeit short, list of acts of kindness to others. Somehow I'm supposed to feel like I'm living the Jesus-driven life. I don't." (p. 15)
What about you? Are you living "the distracted life"? Goodness knows it's easy to do. It's even what society tells us we're supposed to do. Let's assume YES. Let's assume we're all living (or at least tempted to live) "the distracted life." What do YOU do about it? How do you find God in the midst of so much chaos? How do you find Jesus in between the emails, texts, and tweets? How do you make time for the Spirit in the midst of round-the-clock multi-tasking?
Later in the chapter, Feinberg says, "I hunger for the simplicity" (p. 19). She points out that "God seems far more concerned with transformation than mere information" (p. 22).
Transformation is harder! I know how to deal with information and I'm comfortable with it. Transformation calls me to be vulnerable, to let God into the places in my life where I prefer control, to hand over some of my desperate need to make all of my own well-researched choices...and yet, if I can do the hard work of letting go, I am more likely to find some of that simplicty for which I, too, am longing.
Transformation is harder! I know how to deal with information and I'm comfortable with it. Transformation calls me to be vulnerable, to let God into the places in my life where I prefer control, to hand over some of my desperate need to make all of my own well-researched choices...and yet, if I can do the hard work of letting go, I am more likely to find some of that simplicty for which I, too, am longing. What does your soul need? Some simplicty? Some quiet? Some alone time with God? Or something completely different? How do you meet those spiritual needs? What gets in the way of trying to care for your spirit?
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Karen, Great blog! I haven't got my copy of the book, yet, but it sounds really good. I guess my family's best resistance against the "distracted life" is spending time together. I've learned over the past few years that "family time" is more than scheduled activities, it's slowing down to let the children help wash out the tub, plant flowers, fix dinner, etc. It takes longer to get things done this way, but nurturing their sense of belonging and competence is what it's all about. Accepting their "help" has now become a habit. At times when I lack the patience for it, it's gotten to the point that I often can slow down enough to remember their goals for the day are different than mine.
ReplyDeleteHey Karen! I also cannot get a hold of a copy of the book although I have read it before...thought it may be fun to follow along again. Grr...
ReplyDeleteAnyway, at this point in my ministry I am feeling somewhat of a placeholder. My soul thirsts for pockets of creativity and places where I light up instead of holding out, shutting down, and seeing where I should go next.
In my personal life, I am getting very protective of time to just be...be in my house, in my garden, with my peoples, etc...without work. This makes me exceedingly happy in Corvallis. :) My spirit thrives on those moments.
I really enjoyed the intro and chapter one in the book. I had never thought of praying for spiritual hunger. I think if I recognized that hunger and fed it, I would be much less distractable.
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