Most of us lack the "genius" for hearing the voice of God that characterizes true mystics. For us ordinary folk, the sound of God's voice is likely to be more subtle, and we can miss out entirely if we are waiting for a booming voice from a cloud or some state of altered consciousness. Instead, we need to school ourselves to pay attention, to fine tune our hearing and listen for sounds that we might otherwise ignore. Sloth-spiritual sluggishness-is the natural enemy of such attentiveness.
When we listen for the inner voice of God, we are open to our imagination and intuition. We let go of the rational and explicable and befriend the unconscious. We let ourselves be vulnerable to the experience of God.
Margaret Guenther
In order to grow in grace, we must be much alone. It is not in society that the soul grows most vigorously. In one single hour of prayer, it will often make more progress than in days of company with others. It is in the desert that the dew falls freshest and the air is purest.
Andrew Bonar
When Jesus felt the strain, when we had to take a break, when he was drained and exhausted, he would simply announce to his disciples, "We're out of here." Or, in the more traditional verbiage, "Let us go over to the other side." (Mark 4:35) Jesus declares a sabbatical and takes off pronto. Even the disciples have to hustle to catch up with him. By the time the disciples are aboard, Jesus has already implemented his sabbatical by fixing up a cozy nest for himself in the boat's stern and settling down for a much-needed nap.
This text describing Jesus' evening sabbatical morphs into one of the Bible's most dramatic miracle stories. A sudden squall descends on the little boat carrying Jesus and his friends. Non plussed by the storm, Jesus sleeps soundly in the boat's stern until, in panic and sheer despair, the disciples shake their captain awake with the howl, "Teacher don't you care if we drown?" (Mark 4:38)
It's hard for postmodern people to see rest as holiness, not laziness. Postmodern lifestyles equate sleeping in with sloughing off. A siesta is an automatic admission that one is weak, overworked, or overwhelmed. But far from confirming the idea that succumbing to sleep is an invitation to trouble, a guarantee that while we rest events will render us impotent or incompetent, Jesus' undisturbed sleep proves just the opposite.
Leonard Sweet
Other people have analysts. I have Utah.
Robert Redford
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