One of the things I did the other day while I was on holiday in Nelson was to scoop up my nearly three year old grandchild and together we went on an adventure.
When you are three, an adventure can start anywhere, can take you anywhere, and you can end up anywhere. It doesn’t really matter because the heart of the adventure is found in the going. So this adventure took us to the trolly along the waterfront that ended up at Lakeside park… where there are swings and slides and an adventure structure and some ridiculously tame robins… and there was some ice-cream that got shared with the pigeons… and a return trip on the trolly which eventually ended us at a bookstore where there were books that had puppets built right into them who could tell the story of each page… which led to a stop at the library which had building blocks… phew. What a day. What an adventure!
We didn’t really have a plan. We had ideas, but we let the day unfold with a light touch and it was nothing like an everyday day for me where I have plans and goals and lists and things to create and accomplish. For me it was a window into the flow of life when you are almost three and I came away tired, and happy, and filled right up.
It was a sabbath of sorts: a day of rest, and a day to get caught up in the immediate wonder of living. We accomplished nothing in particular, but we were very much alive and very much together.
Welcome to the next four weeks in which our topic will be Sabbath. It is the ancient practice of not doing anything. Or more formally, it is the ancient practice of resting in God. Sabbath is restorative, joyful, simple, revolutionary and often the hardest thing to do in a world that never stops. I hope it will be an adventure.
Blessings, Will