“Now during those days he went out to the mountain to pray, and he spent the night in prayer to God.”
Luke 6:12-13
Often used as transition lines, when we pay close attention to Scripture, we see Jesus often taking time in the mountains to pray. How good and rich it is when we have the opportunity to slow down, get away from the rush of the everyday, and listen to the “sound of the genuine” within us, as Rev. Dr. Howard Thurman urges. (Spelman College, Baccalaureate ceremony, May 4, 1980). On October 10, fifteen pastors and leaders from Cultivating Enough in the Care of Clergy, the presbytery’s clergy care initiative, traveled to Lebanon, PA for a weekend retreat in the woods. With the trees as our prayer partners, we reflected upon our faith stories – those who have nurtured and loved us, those who have urged and encouraged us, the spaces and places where God’s calling in our lives has been fulfilled. Facilitated by the executive director of NEXT Church, Rev. Larissa Kwong Abazia, this time away was rich with sharing, laughter, fellowship with trusted colleagues, self-exploration, and time to rest in nature.
As Jesus retreated during “those days,” we surely have our own days where rest and renewal are needed more than ever. Even in the church we become beholden to a pace of life that is not sustainable; one that wears us out and leaves us depleted, frustrated, maybe even bitter. Capitalistic martyrdom is masked for doing God’s work faithfully – our level of busyness or burnout a sign of our true faith. God invites us to a different way of living, one that is marked by a pace that notices beauty all around us: in every single person, in every single falling leaf, in every single ray of sunshine. Rev. Dr. Kirk Byron Jones calls this a savoring pace; where instead of paying attention to more, we pay more attention. (Rest in the Storm, 2021) Wherever you find yourselves in these days, may God’s great Earth ground you in the divine presence – may you take the time to get outside and pray.
As our pastors reentered their daily lives after our brief time together, we continue to pray for their ministries with their congregations and communities, that together they may bear good fruit for God’s hopes and dreams for the world.
Learn more about Cultivating Enough in the Care of Clergy here.
