Day 4 - What Stops Us From Hearing: Hurry & Distraction
As you begin to spend time with God, settle yourself somewhere quiet and comfortable. Take a few deep breaths. Spend a few moments gathering your thoughts, becoming aware of God’s presence with you and in you.
Journal for 5 minutes on yesterday’s reflection and practice. What did you think about and learn? What challenged you? Did God say anything to you throughout the day?
Then, begin today’s devotional.
Read: Mark 14:3-9
"While he was in Bethany at the house of Simon the leper, as he was reclining at the table, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured it on his head. But some were expressing indignation to one another: “Why has this perfume been wasted? For this perfume might have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and given to the poor.” And they began to scold her. Jesus replied, “Leave her alone. Why are you bothering her? She has done a noble thing for me. You always have the poor with you, and you can do what is good for them whenever you want, but you do not always have me. She has done what she could; she has anointed my body in advance for burial. Truly I tell you, wherever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.”
In this passage, we encounter—as we encounter every day—a world that has no time for beautiful things, no time for dwelling with the One who is Himself Beauty. That world, like the voices in the story, insists that we do something useful, steward our time, make the most of our resources, be practical, be sensible. We listen to these voices. They ring in our ears. And when we are tired out by their demands—tired out by days of busyness and practical activity aimed at getting ahead in the world—we retreat into mindless entertainment in an attempt to recover. So, we oscillate between hurry and self-indulgence, between mindless busyness, on the one hand, and on the other hand, a kind of mindless cessation of activity that we mistake for true rest.
The story of the woman with the vessel of pure nard shows us the way out of this deadly oscillation. She shows us another way. She sees the beauty of Christ, the beauty of the self-sacrifice He is about to undertake, and she responds by doing something wildly impractical, something that makes sense only to a lover, only to one who wants to give her whole self away to her beloved. Her wasteful act is a model of contemplative prayer—a kind of prayer where we simply dwell in the richness of God, the richness of the love that has called us into being and that sustains us in being. In the face of a world that asks us to account for every minute and steward every second, we dwell in the utter wastefulness of silent rejoicing before God. We recognize that God has called us from nothing into being not for anything we need to accomplish, or produce, or achieve. On the contrary, God pronounces His delight over the goodness of creation simply because it is, simply because it exists. Like the creation and like contemplative prayer, the woman’s act is beautiful—is good—in and of itself. It needs no outside, practical justification. And when we dwell in this blessed, wasteful silence before God, what do we hear? We hear the delight that God takes in His creatures. We hear the goodness He pronounced over them at the beginning of all things. We hear—because we are in Christ—the same words the Father pronounces over Christ at His baptism: “This is my son, this is my daughter, with whom I am well pleased (Luke 3:22)”.
Prayer:
God, so often I pray to You so that I can receive something from You. Today, teach me once again how to simply delight in being in Your presence. As David says in Psalm 43, You are my greatest joy. There is no such thing as wasted time when I am spending time with You.
Journal:
Take a few moments to journal through the following question(s).
Consider your past seven days. Honestly evaluate how you spent your time. When you think about your relationship with God (not just quiet time, but abiding in God throughout the day) how would you describe it? How often were you attentive to God?
While your full schedule may not change (going to work and class), when and how can you enjoy God throughout the day?
Today’s Practice:
Contemplative prayer is a response to God’s invitation to abide in Christ. Find a quiet place. Breathe deeply and slowly. Read a Psalm (try 23, 46, or 62). Dwell in the silence for many minutes. Let go of the impulse to get a useful word from God and instead understand that your existence in and of itself delights Him.
By Joseph McQueen, Assistant Professor of English