I know this will come as a surprise to the 14 or 15 of you who actually read this blog on a quasi-regular basis, but I have been heavily influenced both personally and "professionally" by the writings of Eugene Peterson. 22 years ago I read, for the first time (but not the last time) his book, "Working the Angles-The Shape of Pastoral Integrity." In that book, Peterson wrote of a biblical reality, reflected throughout the Older Testament, that I have since tried to work into a daily experience. Like many disciplines, I have been sporadic, but when I am consciously aware of this biblical reality, my days are transformed.
"The Hebrew evening/morning sequence conditions us to the rhythms of grace. We go to sleep, and God begins his work. As we sleep he develops his covenant. We wake and are called out to participate in God's creative action. We respond in faith, in work. But always grace is previous. Grace is primary. We wake into a world we didn't make, into a salvation we didn't earn. Evening: God begins, without our help, his creative day. Morning: God calls us to enjoy and share and develop the work he initiated. Creation and covenant are sheer grace and there to greet us every morning. George MacDonald once wrote that sleep is God's contrivance for giving us the help he cannot get into us when we are awake.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Monday, April 13, 2009
Elsewhere U.S.A.
As readers of this blog know, I like to read books for pleasure, but I also like to read for that "hmmmmm" moment. You know, that moment when the author says something that you haven't really thought about before. I read for that moment that Oliver Wendall Holmes described when he wrote, "Man's mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimensions." I also read books that quantify my own perceptions.
Today I finished reading "Elsewhere U.S.A." by sociologist Dalton Conley. His subtitle is "How we got from the company man, family dinners, and the affluent society to the home office, blackberry moms and economic anxiety."
Here are just a few of the quotes that I now have to process:
"Many Americans--particularly those with children to care of--have morphed into a hyperactive people constantly shuttling between where we think we have to be and where we think we should be..Those Americans who live in this 'Elsewhere Society' are only convinced they're in the right place, doing the right thing, at the right time when they're on their way to the next destination."
"It is upper-income women who complain more about a time crunch as compared to their lower-income counterparts. That is, when you can earn more per hour, the opportunity cost of not working feels greater and the pressure is more intense...For the first time in history, the more we are paid, the more hours we work."
"..we certainly keep our kids busy...Every second is an opportunity for investment in their human and cultural capital--that is, in the cognitive and noncognitive skill sets. Our kids are not playing; rather they are learning to socialize with peers. They are not mashing clay; they are developing their manipulative dexterity in a three-dimensional medium. They are not kicking the ball around; no, they are physically challenging their fine and gross motor skills. They aren't just playing soccer, they are learning to function in rule-based systems and interact with nonparental institutional authority figures"
"...any casual observation of the children of professional parents today would suggest that they are treated like rare specimens, freaks of nature even, who rarely enjoy a minute of unsupervised by an adult...Well-paid professionals need to hire not-so-well compensated child care workers to shuttle their kids to and from soccer leagues and Mandarin lessons while they take meetings at the office or the cafe...The frequency of structured after-school activities has more than doubled over the last two decades for the average American kid...homework has been creeping down the grade ladder...All this happens despite substantial evidence that neither homework quantity nor quality in early grades predicts achievement later on, when it matters."
"Today, the highly educated, white-collar professional earns more per hour than ever before. However, instead of using that increased income to 'live the good life,' she now works more hours. Why? Because now that her billable rate is $200 per hour instead of $100, it 'costs' her more to stay home and 'do nothing.'..better to stay at work for longer hours and buy child care services in the marketplace."
Excuse me while I go chew on this for awhile.
Today I finished reading "Elsewhere U.S.A." by sociologist Dalton Conley. His subtitle is "How we got from the company man, family dinners, and the affluent society to the home office, blackberry moms and economic anxiety."
Here are just a few of the quotes that I now have to process:
"Many Americans--particularly those with children to care of--have morphed into a hyperactive people constantly shuttling between where we think we have to be and where we think we should be..Those Americans who live in this 'Elsewhere Society' are only convinced they're in the right place, doing the right thing, at the right time when they're on their way to the next destination."
"It is upper-income women who complain more about a time crunch as compared to their lower-income counterparts. That is, when you can earn more per hour, the opportunity cost of not working feels greater and the pressure is more intense...For the first time in history, the more we are paid, the more hours we work."
"..we certainly keep our kids busy...Every second is an opportunity for investment in their human and cultural capital--that is, in the cognitive and noncognitive skill sets. Our kids are not playing; rather they are learning to socialize with peers. They are not mashing clay; they are developing their manipulative dexterity in a three-dimensional medium. They are not kicking the ball around; no, they are physically challenging their fine and gross motor skills. They aren't just playing soccer, they are learning to function in rule-based systems and interact with nonparental institutional authority figures"
"...any casual observation of the children of professional parents today would suggest that they are treated like rare specimens, freaks of nature even, who rarely enjoy a minute of unsupervised by an adult...Well-paid professionals need to hire not-so-well compensated child care workers to shuttle their kids to and from soccer leagues and Mandarin lessons while they take meetings at the office or the cafe...The frequency of structured after-school activities has more than doubled over the last two decades for the average American kid...homework has been creeping down the grade ladder...All this happens despite substantial evidence that neither homework quantity nor quality in early grades predicts achievement later on, when it matters."
"Today, the highly educated, white-collar professional earns more per hour than ever before. However, instead of using that increased income to 'live the good life,' she now works more hours. Why? Because now that her billable rate is $200 per hour instead of $100, it 'costs' her more to stay home and 'do nothing.'..better to stay at work for longer hours and buy child care services in the marketplace."
Excuse me while I go chew on this for awhile.
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
A Smile for your Wednesday
This is a video that makes me smile. Wouldn't it have been fun to be there? And participate?
Tuesday, April 07, 2009
Day 32
This week begins the "new" rhythm of moving toward a healthier me. I'll "shred" on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and walk 2 miles on Tuesdays and Thursdays and 4 miles on Saturdays. On Sundays, I'll rest. I've learned a few things about physical exercise that carry over into the spiritual disciplines.
The one that stands out most comes from Jillian Michael's repeated reminder that one of her two workout buddies is "not getting as deep into the exercise" as the other buddy, and that there is "no shame in that." What she is saying is that you need to start somewhere. So you can't do it perfectly or completely to start. You shouldn't let that stop you from starting.
I'm reminded of an early experience after I moved back to Southern California. One of the men in the church where I was privileged to pastor heard that I ride my bike, so he invited me on a ride. I assured him I hadn't ridden in quite some time so we needed to start slow. 32 miles later I pulled into our driveway and nearly collapsed. My friend didn't recognize that what I meant by starting slow needed to be measured by my abilities, not his. It was definitely a shorter ride for him. For me it was almost fatal. (Not really, but it felt like it.)
In the same way, as we begin, or renew, the practice of spiritual disciplines that move us toward a healthier relationship with Christ, we usually don't do well with a weekend of fasting or 24 hours of prayer or reading through the Bible for 72 straight hours. We need to begin where we are and then move on to where we aren't. Just as in human relationships it takes time to develop deep friendships, so with God our relationship grows as we spend time with Him, learning who He is and what He has done and how we can best respond to that.
Easter is the quintessential time of "new beginnings." Maybe now is the time to stop procrastinating about developing a healthier relationship with Christ. You may not be able to "get as deep into the exercise" but there is no shame in that. Better to begin doing something that will enhance the relationship than to do nothing.
The one that stands out most comes from Jillian Michael's repeated reminder that one of her two workout buddies is "not getting as deep into the exercise" as the other buddy, and that there is "no shame in that." What she is saying is that you need to start somewhere. So you can't do it perfectly or completely to start. You shouldn't let that stop you from starting.
I'm reminded of an early experience after I moved back to Southern California. One of the men in the church where I was privileged to pastor heard that I ride my bike, so he invited me on a ride. I assured him I hadn't ridden in quite some time so we needed to start slow. 32 miles later I pulled into our driveway and nearly collapsed. My friend didn't recognize that what I meant by starting slow needed to be measured by my abilities, not his. It was definitely a shorter ride for him. For me it was almost fatal. (Not really, but it felt like it.)
In the same way, as we begin, or renew, the practice of spiritual disciplines that move us toward a healthier relationship with Christ, we usually don't do well with a weekend of fasting or 24 hours of prayer or reading through the Bible for 72 straight hours. We need to begin where we are and then move on to where we aren't. Just as in human relationships it takes time to develop deep friendships, so with God our relationship grows as we spend time with Him, learning who He is and what He has done and how we can best respond to that.
Easter is the quintessential time of "new beginnings." Maybe now is the time to stop procrastinating about developing a healthier relationship with Christ. You may not be able to "get as deep into the exercise" but there is no shame in that. Better to begin doing something that will enhance the relationship than to do nothing.
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