Leisure

April 26, 2009

Photo by Vicki & Chuck Rogers

God calls us to have leisure. In Psalm 46:10 He says, “Be still, and know that I am God.” In his book, Leisure: The Basis of Culture, Josef Pieper says this can also be interpreted to mean, “Have leisure, and know that I am God.” For those of us who work fifty or sixty hours a week, this is a welcomed message.

But how do we define leisure? Pieper describes it as:

…a form of silence, of that silence which is the prerequisite of the apprehension of reality: only the silent hear and those who do not remain silent do not hear. Silence, as it is used in this context, does not mean “dumbness” or “noiselessness”; it means more nearly that the soul’s power to “answer” to the reality of the world is left undisturbed. For leisure is a receptive attitude of mind, a contemplative attitude, and it is not only the occasion but also the capacity for steeping oneself in the whole of creation.”

So leisure, in this sense, doesn’t mean mindlessly chilling in front of the TV. It means being still, listening for God’s word for you, and meditating on it. Pieper says, “It is in these silent and receptive moments that the soul of man is sometimes visited by an awareness of what holds the world together.”

Take a break from work; take time away from the world, and listen for what God has to say to you.