Interruptible
LETTER BY BRIAN MORYKON
There is a time for focus.
A time for deep work and Do Not Disturb.
A time to stick to the schedule.
But a mark of spiritual maturity is being interruptible and having a willingness to do menial things.
“It is a strange fact,” writes Bonhoeffer, “that Christians and even ministers frequently consider their work so important and urgent that they will allow nothing to disturb them. They think they are doing God a service in this, but actually they are disdaining God’s ‘crooked yet straight path.’”
I once shared an office with a pastor for three weeks, where the door stayed open most of the day. When a person popped in unannounced, which happened often, the pastor turned from the computer and offered full-presence listening without an ounce of irritation. That willingness to attend to small matters with great care was to me a sign and a wonder.
Anyone with a job or a family knows there are limitless opportunities to serve others through small things — few things shape a soul like dishes and diapers.
For those who crave recognition, writes Richard Foster, “nothing transforms the desires of the flesh like serving in hiddenness.”
On the other hand, those who fear recognition — perhaps both fear and crave it — may try to avoid the pitfall of human praise by only serving in small ways, even when God invites them into more public service.
Obscurity or visibility is not the goal. Love is the goal. Jesus is the goal. We follow him wherever he leads, serving people in small things, and maybe even in great ones, too.
So, Father, make us interruptible — not for distractions of our own making, but for the people you put in our path. Help us to do small things and big things with great love, by the power of the Spirit of Jesus who lives and works in us.
Brian Morykon
Director of Communications
P.S. Last year, we offered Renovaré Institute alumni a pilot program with Trevor Hudson and Lacy Finn Borgo called “Becoming a Listening Presence in Everyday Life.” It was a transformative experience for those who attended. This year, we’re offering it again, and applications are open to anyone. Learn more and apply here.
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LET’S DIVE IN...
CURATED BY GRACE POUCH
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1.
In a 1983 article from the Christianity Today archives, Richard Foster writes, “It is one thing to act like a servant; it is quite another to be a servant.” (The article contains a portion of chapter 9 from Celebration of Discipline. It’s not too late to join the Renovaré Book Club, where Richard himself will walk us through Celebration!)
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2.
At a 2018 Renovaré pastors conference, James Catford, Renovaré board member and former British Bible Society Chief Executive, presented a talk on humble service in the pattern of Jesus.
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3.
Linda Christians explores the phrase “blessed to be a blessing” with help from the book Living in Christ’s Presence.
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4.
In this teaching video, John Ortberg explores Dallas Willard’s definition of service: “In service we engage our goods and strength in the active promotion of the good of others and the causes of God in our world.”
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5.
(In case you didn’t get enough George MacDonald last week…) Exploring Jesus’ Good Samaritan parable, George MacDonald writes that “Love of our neighbor is the only door out of the dungeon of self.”
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6.
“We need someone to show us the mercy and the true face of God,” Jon Guerra sings in his new song, “Someone Like Jesus.”
Grace Pouch
Content Manager
WORTH QUOTING
“The second service that one should perform for another in a Christian community is that of active helpfulness. This means, initially, simple assistance in trifling, external matters. There is a multitude of these things wherever people live together. Nobody is too good for the meanest service. One who worries about the loss of time that such petty, outward acts of helpfulness entail is usually taking the importance of his own career too solemnly.”
– Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Life Together
(source)
TO CONTEMPLATE
The Good Samaritan
Jacopo Bassano c. 1563
(source)
In the Good Samaritan story, it isn’t “the thought that counts,” but rather embodied, effortful intervention that translates as mercy and love. The artist of this painting puts the costliness of service front and center — the expensive medicine, the up-close and personal encounter with wounds and nakedness, the struggle to heft an incapacitated victim onto a donkey. By precariously tilting the figures in our direction, the artist almost invites us to reach out and help. For me, the painting dispels the illusion that I might somehow love my neighbor without getting my hands dirty.
TO PONDER
Is there a form of active helpfulness — maybe physical service or compassionate listening — that God is inviting you to participate in today?