Joined in 2023 
82 
63 About this deal
One of the surprising things I learned when I began to practice Sabbath is that to really enjoy the seventh day, you have to slow down the other six days. Number Three: Simplicity This book is so relevant for these modern times as many of us in the church have allowed the ways of the world to seduce us to believe they will satisfy. Comer brings a tremendously insightful perspective to the "easy yoke of Jesus" and provides both the rationale and practical know-how in adopting it as one's mantra for life. In reality Jesus’ moral teachings aren’t arbitrary at all. They are laws, yes. But moral laws are no different from scientific laws like E = mc2 or gravity.26 They are statements about how the world actually works. And if you ignore them, not only do you rupture relationship with God, but you also go against the grain of the universe he created. The Korean-born German philosopher Byung-Chul Han ends his book The Burnout Society with a haunting observation of most people in the Western world:“They are too alive to die, and too dead to live.” In this would be my only criticism. The book tilts toward a "how to" manual for reorganizing your hurried life, much like someone might read a manual on how to reorganize a cluttered closet. While JMC offers many caveats that "this isn't legalism" that he's offering, without a clear infusion of the power of the gospel for the harried and hurried, alas the book can come across as just another self-help book with a dash of religion thrown in for good measure.
A discipline is any activity I can do by direct effort that will eventually enable me to do that which, currently, I cannot do by direct effort. It’s a Sunday night, 10:00 p.m. Head up against the glass of an Uber, too tired to even sit up straight. I taught six times today—yes, six. The church I pastor just added another gathering. That’s what you do, right? Make room for people? I made it until about talk number four; I don’t remember anything after that. I’m well beyond tired—emotionally, mentally, even spiritually. What if the day, what if time itself isn’t a scarce resource to seize but a gift to receive with grateful joy? “Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life.” 1 Thessalonians 4v11. Sabbath. The weekly observance of Sabbath helps us practice a spirit of restfulness. It is a time to rest and worship—more than just a ‘day off’. When filtering activities for the Sabbath, Comer recommends “anything to index your heart toward grateful recognition of God’s reality and goodness.” 12 Sabbath can also be an act of resistance, a way of saying we have enough in the face of our society’s constant clamor for more. Sabbath provides necessary rest—which, ironically, takes effort and intentionality to achieve. We ignore our need for rest at our own peril, since emotional, physical and mental health suffer when we push ourselves too hard for too long. Comer comments, “Sabbath is coming for you, whether as delight or discipline.” 13 In other words, accept the gift of rest now, or you may be forced into an unwanted rest later due to burnout.Both sin and busyness have the exact same effect—they cut off your connection to God, to other people, and even to your own soul.
More recently, a pastor from Portland was having a conversation with John, who was now serving as the seasoned mentor, about this unhurried life. One of the fruits of that conversation was another book on the theme of hurry, titled from Dallas’s wise counsel: The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer. Ok wow! Definitely convicted of the way I currently live life & so many practical ways I can change my unhealthy habits. For sure not taking his advice about having only 2 grey shirts….but will be taking many other practices. Loved the chapter on Sabbath & solitude/silence. There’s a long silence on the other end of the line… According to John, “With Willard there’s always a long silence on the other end of the line.I do wish he had helped me a little in the middle. I had a quam bc he talks about external noise and internal noise (ch. on silence and solitude). My issue is that he said the inner noise is quite difficult to silence but we must silence the inner noise and then he just moves on. Nothing about how to do that. I am finding that his practice later on in the slowing chapter and aiding in this process. But i wish he had told me that in the earlier chapters.
There are those rare books that every single waking person needs to immediately go read. This is that book. We’ve found no better conversation or a more much-needed antidote to our culture’s problem of busyness and hurry than John Mark’s words in this book. Beyond helpful and encouraging and insightful to us!” —Alyssa and Jefferson Bethke,New York Timesbest-selling authors of Jesus > Religionand Love That Lasts As you are entering the Christmas holiday season, how is your soul? Is the busyness of all the planning and preparation details getting into you, causing anxiety, or irritation, or distraction? It’s easy place to find ourselves.On the one hand, I really liked this book. I found it convicting. The writing style is clear and to the point without feeling too pithy. It is... relaxing, which is a weird word to use in context of a self-help style book. I would like to share and discuss this book with other people. I think it deserves more time than I gave it. Time to chew on it. Time to put some of the words into practice. Maybe time to listen to it at something other than 3x speed.
Great Deal 
New Comment