More on Stillness
by Jenni
Parody on the 23rd Psalm:
The clock is my dictator, I shall not rest.
It makes me lie down only when exhausted,
It leads me to deep depression,
It hounds my soul.
It leads me in circles of frenzy for activity’s sake.
Even though I run frantically from task to task,
I will never get it done,
For my “ideal” is with me,
Deadlines and my need for approval, they drive me.
They demand performance from me, beyond the limits of my schedule.
They anoint my head with migraines.
My in-basket overflows.
Surely fatigue and time pressure shall follow me all the days of my life,
And I will dwell in the bonds of frustration forever.
How’s that for a bit of ironic humor before the weekend? Cruelly close to the truth we’ve all experienced at times, isn’t it? (Text by Marcia K Hornok; I found it in Mark Powley’s wonderful book, Consumer Detox, Zondervan 2010.)
My post on stillness (No Shame in Stillness: http://bit.ly/qea8w5) earlier this week seems to have hit a nerve. Judging by the feedback I’ve gotten, many of us are becoming more aware of our vital need to periodically unplug and just be…and we’re finally taking steps to make that a priority. So I wanted to follow up on this issue more with you through the weekend. If you want to think a bit deeper and consider how it’s affecting your (and your children’s) ability to create and flourish, I recommend Scott Belsky’s provacative article as a great follow-up: What Happened to Downtime? The Extinction of Deep Thinking Sacred Space (read it here: http://bit.ly/dOWLOi). Belsky is the CEO of Behance and author of the national bestselling book Making Ideas Happen.
He writes that, “The potential of our own creativity is rapidly being compromised by the era we live in. I believe that genius in the 21st century will be attributed to people who are able to unplug from the constant state of reactionary workflow, reduce their amount of insecurity work, and allow their minds to solve the great challenges of our era.” Definitely check out his article when you have a chance!
Also, I wanted to share a few inspirational quotes and verses on stillness that have served as guideposts to me along this journey. These are a powerful antidote to “The clock is my dictator” mindset above. You might even want to meditate on one of them during your next creative pause. (Located below the scratch ‘n sniff flower image. 
)
Let's stop & smell the roses
“Within you there is a stillness and a sanctuary to which you can retreat at any time and be yourself.” (Hermann Hesse)
“Sabbath requires composure. It requires the strength of will to interrupt the momentum of work. Enough. Now I rest. Creating and resting is essential.” (Mark Bowley, Consumer Detox)
“In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength.’” (Isaiah 30:15)
“He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul.” (Psalm 23:1-3a)
“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed.” (Albert Einstein)
“Then Jesus said, ‘Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls.’” (Matthew 11:28)
You amaze me with every blog you write, thank you Jenni. I love you, grama
These words ring true to me as I sit here in the midst of a wall of moving boxes, scattered papers, and unpacked items. My once orderly clean house has become a wretched mess and usually this would cause me great distress. Not tonight. I awoke early this am and had some precious quiet time before tackling a difficult day. Then this evening I took my weary body on a walk and sat on my chair on the edge of our property enjoying the wind on my face and the glisten of the snow covered Mts. I am at peace in the midst of craziness. Sometimes its hard to find the quiet times when life gets moving faster. That is when we need it the most. Thank you for your wise words Jenni!
Interesting parody. It’s quite thought provoking.
The most telling comment I can make Is that I’m too restless and busy to take time to read slowly and fully appreciate your posts. I look forward to reading more, and more thoughtfully.
“Sabbath” is mentioned in one of your quotes above. Reinventing or returning to Sabbath would be good for our society, but that isn’t going to happen. At least we can do it individually (I say hopefully).
Perhaps the reinvention is happening as we disgard things that we have done by rote and are now becoming more aware of how they
really serve us – Sabbath may be one of those things and hopefully will reinvent to more than an hour on Sunday.
Your blog is God speaking to me today – stillness. I’m a single mom and follower of Jesus Christ…son’s father has been out of the picture for years now/no child support etc. After years of abuse by many people in my life, and the stress of parenting alone for so long (God Himself says two are better than one…if one falls down the other can pick you up – not having that has taken a toll because when I fall down I don’t have a helper in the natural to pick me up),and working full time in a high stress job, I became very ill from stress and had to quit my job at the beginning of this year. Today, I was in a debate with my brother, not a follower of Christ, about my situation – my 100% commission job that I currently have has left me short financially for rent etc etc – a first in my life. I told Him, since I am not fully healed, that in my weakness and need for rest an healing, that God would come through for me somehow because of His mercy and not punishe me for resting as he believes I should just press through and force myself to work, work, work when my body speaks otherwise. I will have to humble myself and seek help from my local churches. Say a prayer for me. God is still good!
SO TRUE!!!
Thank you so much for this blog! You truly have a gift of words and imagination. You have inspired me to write my own blog about Psalms 23. Please keep blogging the truth!! GOD BLESS!
LOVE your blog. I can relate to it so much… and it’s so beautiful to read. Thank you for sharing your insights, and I look forward to reading more about your gorgeous life.
(And congratulations on the pregnancy…I hope everything is going well!)
Wonderful blogging! Glad I stumbled upon your blog. Love your last two posts on Stillness… looking for more!
Peace, Angela
“I believe that genius in the 21st century will be attributed to people who are able to unplug from the constant state of reactionary workflow, reduce their amount of insecurity work, and allow their minds to solve the great challenges of our era.”
It is a good premise, but not often easy to do.
In the seventies it was entitled “un-cluttering your life” and now I have lost track of what the current definition might be.
Time … Such a precious commodity we either squander it or regrettably, waste it, but we never seem to make good use of it.
Nice job.
DS
I saw your blog on Freshly Pressed – you’ve got amazing stuff! I’ll be back again!
I’ve come through John’s blog and so glad I did. Love the parody.
A great post – Walker sent me
Many people unplug from the day by plugging back into an electronic
device – as you point out it’s important to simply ‘Be’
This is absolutely beautiful. I am about to read Belsky’s article right now! I also think your blogs on stillness will be very helpful to a good friend of mine and I would like to give the link to it for her if that’s okay to pass it on
You write so beautifully!
Very good post.
“At the still point of the turning world. Neither flesh nor fleshless;
Neither from nor towards; at the still point, there the dance is,
But neither arrest nor movement. And do not call it fixity,
Where past and future are gathered. Neither movement from nor towards,
Neither ascent nor decline. Except for the point, the still point,
There would be no dance, and there is only the dance.
I can only say, there we have been: but I cannot say where.
And I cannot say, how long, for that is to place it in time.
The inner freedom from the practical desire,
The release from action and suffering, release from the inner
And the outer compulsion, yet surrounded
By a grace of sense, a white light still and moving.”
“Burnt Norton
–T.S. Eliot
“In My Beginning Is My End”
http://tim-shey.blogspot.com/2012/01/in-my-beginning-is-my-end.html