SABBATICAL 3, And I thought Pandora was quiet!

Hiking through the Aspen trees

Every now and then we hear an All Terrain Vehicle (ATV) pass on the street below. Since that is not a regular occurrence, we go to the windows and see who it is. It is really quiet here. We see more deer near the cabin than we do motor vehicles. Never the sound of a siren or more than cars honking and racing by. Sometimes we hear an airplane overhead or a chain saw of a neighbor, but that is about all the noise we have around here. In June we spent a couple of nights on the 16th floor of the Double Tree Hotel in down town Chicago. There it was constant noise. The L trains would rumble past and sirens seemed to screech constantly. The streets below were full of people, trucks, and cars of all description. (Except there were no ATV’s or chain saws.)

Another contrast on noise level was the pro tennis match and the Reds baseball game that we attended in late August in Cincinnati . (sabbatical blog 1) More noise is constantly being encouraged to spur the players on in a baseball game. The noise level reaches fever pitch when a run is scored or a home run is hit. A fireworks presentation at the end of the game completes an evening of elevated noise. The pro tennis match, however, was completely different. Having never attended one before I was surprised at the silence in which the contestants played out their point. The only cheering was after a point was scored.

We drove over Cottonwood Pass

Sometimes too much quietness is a little disconcerting. I find that I like to hide in a lot of noise. We are exhorted in the Psalms to “Be still and know that I am God.” We can know God in stillness. Allowing ourselves to truly become still is not always easy. But it is a lot easier in the midst of God’s awesome creation of quietness. Another verse I came across is Isaiah 30:15: “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it.” I am thankful for this time away of the noise of everyday routines and normal church work to meet God in the stillness and quietness of God’s creation. I truly believe we all need to work in some quietness in the noise of our schedules to meet God and allow God to renew our strength for the work God gives us the privilege to do.

We spend each day in the quietness here in reading and reflection. I first spend about an hour following my daily Bible reading schedule which takes me through the Old Testament once and the New Testament and Psalms two times each year. This morning, I read one of my favorite passages, Ezekiel 37 in which God promises that the dry bones would come to life. The rest of the morning is spent reading some books that I have had on my list to read some time. Here is what I have been reading.

Resting in Molly's Meadow after a long hike up

Love Wins: A book about heaven, hell and the fate of every person who ever lived by Rob Bell. He looks at these thorny issues with fresh eyes and new insight. He asks a lot of pertinent questions of our traditional way of looking at heaven, hell and who will end up where. I think Bell’s most important contribution is to encourage the church to be a place where dialogue and hard questions are not only encouraged but expected.

The Holy Longing: The Search for a Christian Spirituality by Ronald Rolheiser. I have just begun this book but had it recommended to me by a number of persons as a book that encourages a true and balanced spirituality in our lives.

Recovering the Scandal of the Cross: Atonement in New Testament and Contemporary Contexts by Mark Baker and Joel Green. Baker was one of my son Philip’s professors at Fresno Pacific Mennonite Brethren Seminary. He analyzes and evaluates the various theories of atonement in the church today especially the “penal substitution” theory which many churches today hold to be the one true Biblical theory. Baker and Green call for a broader approach saying the New Testament offers multiple explanations about the meaning of Jesus’ death on the cross and we need them all for a more complete faith. It is very challenging and enlightening.

Cumberland Pass was a rocky unpaved road with beautiful views

We are reading together out loud a chapter each evening the novel, Home to Harmony by Philip Gulley, an ordained minister in the Friends church, This novel is the first book of the Harmony series in which Sam Gardner, the pastor of the Friends church in the town of Harmony, Indiana shares about the various colorful characters and events in his church and town. Very creative and humorous writing. It is easy to see people we really know in his fictitious characters. Sometimes I see myself.

I have finally finished Judy Clemens Smucker’s mystery novel, Flowers for her Grave which I never finished last year and am now in the middle of her newest book Dying Echo. I try and hold off on this sort of reading until the evening or I will never get to my theological reading. I especially enjoy the interaction between Casey, the main character, and her cynical companion, Death. I also like the wonderfully eccentric characters that push the plot forward. Thanks, Judy, for some great entertainment.

Today was an unusual day in that it was cloudy and rainy the entire day. No fire hazard around here. The thermometer on the deck never made it above 40 degrees. Dianne and I go for daily walks in which we can share and discuss our readings of the day and talk about our dreams. It is wonderful to be able to share this time together. We many times see some deer in the trees and we note each day how the Aspen trees are changing. The leaves are turning a bright yellow hue. This mixed in with the green pine trees is another example of Divine creativity on display here.
Blessings.

Wedding chapel overlooking mountains above Vail