rbsabbathweek24

“Making writing a big deal tends to make writing difficult.”

I read this line in Julia Cameron’s book, The Right to Write, and I thought about how writing deadlines can do this;  squelch all the creativity right out of your soul for the sake of timeliness.  Yet they are necessary and I daresay, helpful. But sometimes we make a big deal out of things unnecessarily, in other parts of life too.

Summer often arrives with a few parenting bricks I carry around on my chest. The weightiness of making sure my kid’s summer vacation is fun and balanced, lighthearted but responsible, restful with a hint of productivity swirled in for good measure. By the second week, I’m exhausted hauling around my own expectations.

So this year, I’m asking God this simple question before my feet hit the floor: “How can I love my children today and what does that look like to you?”

Last night, my son and I sat at the bar in the kitchen, indulging in Sonic for dinner because the other two are eating In and Out Burger to their hearts content all over the state of California this week. No background noise to distract, just conversation about what matters to him.  We lingered in some comfortable silence too.

I learned some new things about my boy.

And I wondered, could it be that God is answering my question with one word? Listen.

Sometimes we think observing Sabbath needs to be swept clean of interruption, tidy and routine in order to grant ourselves permission to rest. We make it a big deal and it becomes difficult. And perhaps all God is asking us to do is love Him by doing one thing. Listen.

He just might want to tell us something new.

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When I struggle to write, it is because I am trying to speak on the page rather than listen there. ~Julia Cameron

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