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I have been writing about rhythms for life including daily and weekly rhythms. But all of us have annual rhythms as well. Most of us take annual vacations and celebrate birthdays and other special occasions with family and friends. And we have holidays (“holy days”) that come around once a year that we celebrate with family as well as our faith community. The three major holy days we celebrate as Christ followers have to do with Jesus’ birth (Christmas), his resurrection (Easter), and his sending of the Spirit to fill and equip us to continue his ministry in the world (Pentecost).
The idea of annual holy days goes back to the Old Testament. God specifically instructed his people to commemorate his faithfulness through annual celebrations: remembering and celebrating their deliverance from slavery in Egypt (Passover), their deliverance from Haman (Purim), and the rededication of the temple (Hanukkah).
Not only did they have annual rhythms, but every seventh year brought an invitation to a sabbatical. “The essence of Sabbatical is rooted in the Hebrew word sabbat and the biblical traditions surrounding it. The first practice that of the Sabbath day described in the creation story of Genesis 1 and 2; God rested on the seventh day from all the work he had done…. The second sabbatical practice is allowing the land to lie fallow every seventh year, as prescribed in Leviticus 25:3-4” (from Clergy Renewal: The Alban Guide to Sabbatical Planning).
Sabbatical is a gift that many academics and pastors are given. Almost three years ago in December 2019, the session approved the plan for my taking a sabbatical in the summer of 2021, and I received a generous grant from the Lilly Endowment National Clergy Renewal Program. As I wrote the proposal for the grant, I chose the theme of celebration. In her book Spiritual Disciples Handbook, Adele Calhoun writes, “God invented delight, joy and celebration. And one way we enter into the divine life of the Trinity is through celebration.”
The summer of 2021 brought many occasions to celebrate in my family, and I wanted to embrace these occasions with the time and space to truly celebrate. As an introvert, I often find that I need time alone on my weekly Sabbath to be renewed. This leaves little time to pursue recreation, fun, and adventure in a way I would like to do with my family. I longed to enter into the divine life of the Trinity through celebration with time, space, and energy to be alone with the Lord and to spend time with my family and observe the special occasions 2021 would bring and do crazy fun things and go places the routine of life and ministry do not always permit.
To celebrate the many various occasions that were happening in that season, our family of four planned to celebrate my oldest child’s high school graduation by traveling abroad for the first time to England and Scotland. Then we would go to Nevada together to celebrate my mother’s 90th birthday. Then we would go on to California to see where Stuart and I met and to explore the Bay Area. Stuart and I also planned to go to New York City to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary.
I’m telling you all this to say none of those things happened as planned. The Woody Allen quote comes to mind, “If you want to hear God laugh, tell him your plans.” I alone joined my siblings in celebrating our mom’s 90th birthday, but by then she had suffered a major health crisis and was living in an independent living facility in a new city. And of course, I was able to go on the planned Celtic Pilgrimage, which I have shared about extensively.
In the first lecture on my recent Celtic Pilgrimage, Adele Calhoun shared a quote by Flannery O’Connor: “Illness can be more instructive than a long trip to Europe.” O’Connor suffered greatly in her physical body and died when she was 39. She knew experientially the truth of those words, and they resonated with me. All the plans for my sabbatical were changed due primarily to the pandemic and because of ill health of family members I love and care about. I do not share this to receive pity. It is what it is.
As I took time on a recent silence and solitude retreat to prayerfully reflect on the sabbatical, I gave thanks for the many gifts of grace I did receive from the time given me. Though it did not take me to as many places I had planned, it was still a rich and fun time for me and my family that did lead me closer to God and a deeper experience of joy.
Because I had been asked to step down for a season in the summer of 2021 and had had that time for rest, I received permission from the Clergy Renewal to redirect the resources primarily given for travel to do fun things closer to home. This turned out to be a blessing, and I have already written about some of that in a previous post.
During my sabbatical, I reconnected with my great loves for reading literature and attending the theater. I have enjoyed reading many stories and continuing to connect those stories with my story and God’s great story of redemption. We have also had the opportunity to see some live theater including To Kill a Mockingbird and Beautiful: The Carole King Musical.
One of the questions they ask in the clergy proposal is what makes your heart sing. Stories—good stories make my heart sing. I am not a musician or artist, but how I love a good story! For me, it’s not just entertainment but provides insight and opportunities to learn about life and faith. Having the time and resources to splurge on literature and live theater has been so renewing and so fun for which I give God great thanks.
God’s timing is always perfect. The sabbatical time was not what I had planned, but the resources provided what I needed—time and space to enjoy my family and celebrate in unexpected ways. And it has led to greater healing and wholeness and the ability to live out of my truest and best self with more joy and laughter. Again I quote Adele Calhoun, “Celebration can enlarge our capacity to enjoy and serve God.”
The sabbatical time and resources also provided what I needed to take care of my family and myself in a season of life that has turned out to be much different than I had ever imagined. I trust the Lord will continue to use the gifts received in this season to continue to enable me to lead, teach, and serve in a new way, in a new season in the future ministry God leads me to.
In his wonderful book Celebration of Discipline, Richard Foster writes, “Celebration begets more celebration. Joy begets more joy. Laughter begets more laughter. Times of genuine celebration have the potential of bringing healing and wholeness to the entire community. So … let’s celebrate!”
I confess that celebration still does not come naturally to me, and I certainly feel uncomfortable when attention is focused on me. However, as I head into the last weeks of my ministry here, I am seeking to focus on joy, laughter, and celebration as I remember with gratitude all God has done in and through and for me and the congregation in the almost 16 years at VPC. I hope you will join me in celebrating God’s goodness and faithfulness.
