slow.

There are times in my life where I envy Jesus' ability, or more appropriately, his discipline to retreat to the wilderness.

So many moments in life call for stress, headaches, and sadness... how much does it take before we escape to the wilderness to rise from it and seek intimacy with God?

I've had the realization today that I am well past ready to leave America for a little while. I'll be returning to my island home in Saba in just over three weeks, and I have already passed the point of anticipation.  I just want to be somewhere time slows down.  

As I was once told, "Whatchu runnin' for? Nobody runs in Saba."

I doubt anybody runs in Heaven.

I remember Mark Yaconelli telling the story of his son starting "the Slow Club" when I heard him speak at Youth Specialties.  The two rules of Slow Club are (1) No Running and (2) No Hurrying.

I like the sound of Slow Club, but the truth is, I would be a crappy member.

As much as I hate it, I love to hurry.

But there is something about stepping off a plane in Saba that instantly proclaims peace. 

During the week we will do America's best to hurry from one event to the next with high expectations and high organization, but, despite that, there is an unmistakable calm that cannot be ignored.

In every still moment, there is Grace.

With the life I live here... it's almost fantastic to imagine that there are still moments in the world. Oh, how I long for that Peace!

I long for it so much that it's hard to tell myself that I am the only thing standing in the way of achieving it.

I have every opportunity to join the Slow Club; to settle down and 'participate in the unforced rhythms of God's grace' (Eugene Peterson).

It really coincides with my previous post about sunshine and how it makes it easier to be a Christian sometimes... Something about moving slowly, having no place to be, and having no set time to be there makes it easier to be a Christian.

Soon enough I'll be back in Saba. I'll have my moments in which I'll break the Slow Club rules, whether it be on my own terms or at the mercy of the group, but I pray that I savor the moments in which time stands still.

I just want to savor the moments in which I am engulfed by my Creator's Love and Peace.

Because I know when I step back on American soil the Slow Club will all but disappear, and I'm going to have a hard time being its only member in the Atlanta airport. That's a sad moment, but it is still fully within the overwhelming Peace of God.

Father, show me Peace. The real Peace that can be found in you and you alone.  I want to love like you love, and I want to breathe with the same purpose and rhythm that you have called me to.  I cannot live without you and your purpose for my life, and I need your Peace to envelop my struggle to be fully alive. I am yours, may our hearts beat as one. 

Amen.