Today’s Readings: Psalm 76; Ruth 3:1-13; Matthew 24:36-43; 2 Peter 1:1-4; Psalm 90
During my sabbatical last year, I read Eugene Peterson’s book titled “The Contemplative Pastor”. In the book, he identified a couple of traits that should define an effective pastor. One of the traits Peterson identified was “unbusy”. By this, Peterson meant a pastor should be flexible enough so that the pastor can find time to both spiritually nurture her/himself and be available to others without making them feel like they are imposing upon her/him. I would certainly agree with that first trait. A second trait Peterson listed is that an effective pastor should be apocryphal. By this, Peterson meant that the spiritual leader should convey a sense of urgency in regards to one’s faith. This theme of urgency runs through both yesterday and today’s Gospel readings. Both of those passages stress being spiritually ready at all times since you won’t know the precise moment when God will appear. Now most folks think of urgency in terms of reward and punishment (i.e. if you’re ready when God appear, you’ll go to heaven; if you aren’t, you’ll go to hell). I don’t relate to the notion of urgency that way at all. I think of urgency as a sort of oar that you are diligent about keeping in the water that keeps you headed in the right track. If you become complacent about keeping your oar in the water, your life will wander off aimlessly. If you are diligent about keeping your oar in the water, however, you’ll head in the right track. Same thing with our spiritual lives. If we are complacent about our relationship with God, we allow other things to take over our life and we start to meander. If we are diligent about our relationship with God, on the other hand, we find comfort and peace of mind in knowing that we are headed in the right direction. In other words, I believe a sense of urgency isn’t something that just pays off in the distant future - it’s something that affects the quality of our spiritual life each and every day. So how do you view having a sense of urgency in your spiritual life? Is it something designed simply to get you into heaven, or does it have a larger, more active role in your day-to-day life? Til next time…
During my sabbatical last year, I read Eugene Peterson’s book titled “The Contemplative Pastor”. In the book, he identified a couple of traits that should define an effective pastor. One of the traits Peterson identified was “unbusy”. By this, Peterson meant a pastor should be flexible enough so that the pastor can find time to both spiritually nurture her/himself and be available to others without making them feel like they are imposing upon her/him. I would certainly agree with that first trait. A second trait Peterson listed is that an effective pastor should be apocryphal. By this, Peterson meant that the spiritual leader should convey a sense of urgency in regards to one’s faith. This theme of urgency runs through both yesterday and today’s Gospel readings. Both of those passages stress being spiritually ready at all times since you won’t know the precise moment when God will appear. Now most folks think of urgency in terms of reward and punishment (i.e. if you’re ready when God appear, you’ll go to heaven; if you aren’t, you’ll go to hell). I don’t relate to the notion of urgency that way at all. I think of urgency as a sort of oar that you are diligent about keeping in the water that keeps you headed in the right track. If you become complacent about keeping your oar in the water, your life will wander off aimlessly. If you are diligent about keeping your oar in the water, however, you’ll head in the right track. Same thing with our spiritual lives. If we are complacent about our relationship with God, we allow other things to take over our life and we start to meander. If we are diligent about our relationship with God, on the other hand, we find comfort and peace of mind in knowing that we are headed in the right direction. In other words, I believe a sense of urgency isn’t something that just pays off in the distant future - it’s something that affects the quality of our spiritual life each and every day. So how do you view having a sense of urgency in your spiritual life? Is it something designed simply to get you into heaven, or does it have a larger, more active role in your day-to-day life? Til next time…
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