life

top three sensations of being alive today:

1. the comforting feeling caused by the smell of my wife's hair when i hug her;
2. the chilly feeling an ice-cold drink causes as peristalsis eases it down into your stomach;
3. the welcome warmth of the sun on your back after a dreary winter.

God is good.

noise and silence

i have come to think of silence not so much as the absence of words, nor even the absence of noise, but the presence of something greater, like anti-noise, peace, or shalom. just as dark is the absence of light, noise is the absence of silence; the presence of the lesser is the absence of the greater.

noise is, or is that which provokes, the inappropriate word, inappropriate thought, or inappropriate image. merely keeping my mouth closed does not address the clamour of the old man. merely getting rid of one's t.v., radio, email, or extraneous diary appointments are just cutting off one's sinful hand, or gouging out one's sinful eye. they're a bit like only washing the outside of the cup.

anti-noise is the inner poise which allows self-control. peace guards the heart and mind. shalom is enjoying the presence of the eternal sabbath in the midst of temporal work and striving.

another back post

dallas willard quoting william c martin's The Art of Pastoring:

"If you fill your [diary] with important appointments, you will have no time for God. If you fill your spare time with essential reading, you will starve your soul. If you fill your mind with worry about budgets and offerings, the pains in your chest and the ache in your shoulders will betray you. If you try to conform to the expectations of those around you will forever be their slave. Work a modest day, then step back and rest. This will keep you close to God...

One's [diary] tells plenty about one's spiritual formation: it reveals volumes about the pastor's spiritual condition, values, fears and ambitions. It tells who your bosses are, who your lover is, how much value you place on your soul.

If you're working more than 50 hours a week, you're not doing it for God, no matter how eloquent your rationalisations. Take a long prayerful, meditative look at your [diary]. Who are you trying to impress? God? Give me a break! The congregation? Possibly. Yourself? Bingo. Now cut some big chunks out of each week for family, rest, meditation, prayer and flower-sniffing, and when you've done that you'll be more sensitive to the path of God."

and while we're still reeling from those blows, willard follows up with this statement of c. s. lewis:

"Only lazy people are busy."

by way of the briefest of explanations, willard comments: "if you are unwilling to exert yourself to take control of your time, you will constantly be torn to pieces by the demands of others."