In Good Time
My older sister sent me a Marketplace link the night before my 15th wedding anniversary.
I happily sent an e-transfer and drove a 60-minute round trip to pick up a sizeable wood-framed wall sign from “the back porch with the Christmas lights.”
That same night my husband measured and nailed the sign into a spot that had been waiting for something meaningful for almost four years.
It now showcases a bold statement in scrolling letters.
Blessed
I didn't see the profound meaning in this word, beyond gratitude, until weeks later….
We mark the passing of time with outings, trips, gifts and symbols like this sign because we know we can't slow time, only hold the moment by giving it attention!
This posture is changing me.
And the wounds where I have whipped my back to move faster and work harder are healing.
I may be as productive and efficient as before—but my motivation and experience within my body, the people around me, and the Lord are different.
It reminds me of Matthew 11:28-30 where a partnership with the Lord brings a new level of ease and joy.
My heart is finding its voice again, reminding my soul that efficiency and productivity—while the metric of our culture—are not values that ensure we live with purpose and meaning.
I am still finding the words for this transformation.
It feels like a fresh start.
Fresh starts are what we hope for each new year, yet how quickly good intentions and ideas get lost as we turn the pages of our journals and planners.
I entered this year with more gratitude and so much less hurry, and I shared these 3 things I am trying in my last post.
I want to take you behind the scenes of these three things, including a brief reflection on a workshop I took with the author of one of the books I read this month!
I'll conclude with a different perspective on the word ‘blessed.’
First, John Eldredge’s “30 Days to Resilient” sessions have played a big part in reorienting and repairing my heart.
While it takes discipline and consistency to open the Pause App and hit play each morning and night, it feels like a soul spa!
I lay under a blanket with my eyes closed, listening to 8-10 minutes of calming music, verses, and guidance through the progressing modules.
This practice has revealed how easily I am distracted and how far my heart is from a genuine connection with Jesus at times—among many things I'm still reflecting on….
Both the morning and evening times help me detox from the effects of hustle and continue healing through grief while strengthening my union with Jesus.
I especially treasure the evening sessions; my husband and I lay in bed, holding hands as we enter this sacred space together.
Eldredge reminds us to be gentle with ourselves as we find the speed our souls were made to live.
At the same time, I started 2023 with Jen Pollock Michel’s weekly workshops on creating a Rule of Life.
This workshop was part of her new book’s pre-order bonus. It echoed the themes in, In Good Time: 8 habits for reimagining productivity, resisting hurry, and practicing peace, which she wrote over the pandemic.
Interestingly “In Time” is the title of my second blog post here, 2.5 years ago, a phrase I gleaned from a counsellor’s wise advice and one of my mantras ever since.
Pollock Michel’s new book title affirms Ecclesiastes’ refrain, “a time for everything.” We may explore this exegetically in the future as I study this more in seminary, but let’s jump to the practical.
A Rule of Life is like a trellis for our spiritual growth.
As a Christian, it reflects our Matthew 22:37-39 calling to love the Lord with everything we are and to love our neighbours as we love ourselves.
This Benedicton practice asks for specific intentions for our season in each area of our life.
Pollock Michel often reminded us in the workshop that this is a practice. It is not about creating a perfect Rule of Life.
While the broader themes may stay the same, the specifics will evolve through times of prayer and reflection with the Lord as the years go by.
We all live with a ‘rule,’ whether we realize it or not. Maybe it is time to think about what yours reflects and where you would like to invest and grow this season.
Jen Pollock Michel hopes to offer more workshops on this in the future!
By the way, I am giving a copy of this book to a subscriber on my email list—subscribe here!
The draw will be on February 1st, and the winner will be announced in the Traveling Life Together group.
Finally, the third thing on my list of things I am trying at the start of 2023 is seminary!
I will slowly complete a master’s degree in leadership and ministry.
I felt at home in my first class, not because I was tuning in via Zoom from my bedroom’s office corner, but because I sensed a big heart nod.
This is what doing the next right thing feels like, right Emily P. Freeman?
It is profoundly healing to research and write on the theology of suffering and hope this semester while gleaning from my classmates and professor.
During my first three-hour class, we were given a 15-minute break. I ran downstairs to check in on my children and almost teared up as I saw their scrapbooks, where my mom led them through a character trait lesson on loyalty.
I ran upstairs to fold laundry and match socks before class resumed, and I reflected on my ‘yes’ to a new challenge.
I said many ‘noes’ so this beauty could unfold this season.
In this first month of the year, I've also reflected on some spiritual practices like Sabbath, fasting and prayer, and I hope to share more about these in future posts and my Soulful Words monthly emails (I found a great resource on these themes to share in this month’s issue)!
Change isn't as daunting when you realize you are most of the resistance.
If God has spoken to you through these words, I encourage you to consider turning against our culture’s rushing current.
You may also want to consider prayer ministry or counselling. These resources help me understand myself and God’s direction so much more!
If you need to say ‘no,’ lean in or let go of some things in 2023—take this as one more person cheering you on!
A few weeks after we hung our new sign up over our bed, I saw a hard-earned truth in the word ‘blessed.'
Days before my dad moved to palliative care, he asked us to write the sermon on the mount verses from Matthew 5:1-12 on index cards for him to review.
“Blessed are the….”
True blessings are part of the upside-down kingdom we find in this passage.
From resonating with Job 1:21 when I miscarried our second baby to sitting in my writing nook as I write about psalms of lament for a seminary paper, I realize ‘blessed’ is not about what we've received but what we give as we worship through our pain. And in our suffering and offerings, we encounter God with us.
This is blessed!
God is my trellis.
I give him my time, my desires, my life.
These revelations take some good time.
I am glad there is no hurry in God's Kingdom.