Give it a rest

Christian Century, July 24, 2007

GIVE IT A REST: Presbyterian pastor Pam Driesell points out there are two kinds of time: mechanical time and body time; we can go by the clock to know when it's time to eat or sleep, or we can pay attention to what our bodies are telling us about the need to eat or sleep. Driesell says that she attempted to deal with the demands of mechanical time by seeking some kind of balance, but in the course of her ministry her balance was often thrown off by unexpected intrusions.

Now she prefers to think of time by using the metaphor of rhythm--she seeks a rhythm between productive time and Sabbath rest. To do this means learning the discipline of "stopping," just as God stopped creating the world after six days. The practice of corporate worship and other spiritual disciplines are essential to the rhythm of life, she says (Cloud of Witnesses audio journal, volume 10).