"passivi-TEA"

Their strength is to sit still. (Isaiah 30:7, KJV)

A cuppa "passivi-TEA." Sounds negative, doesn't it? Not necessarily.

"Inner stillness is an absolute necessity to truly knowing God," as was noted in yesterday's Streams in the Desert entry. (4/7) I understand those times when one's "entire being seems to throb with anxiety." Often, like the writer of Streams recounts, I, too, have to be aware of my helplessness in the midst of a crisis before I sit and listen for direction from that "still small voice." (1 Kings 19:12) For there in lies strength. His strength that comes as one is still before HIm. It's not just squelching or compressing the anxiety of the present overwhelming circumstance. A temporary quieting of tension might occur....but, that just represses it for eruption at a later time. An eruption that can "hurt" innocent by-standers. Believe me, I have experienced that more often than I want to admit. 

Therefore, passivity has a positive result. It's not laziness or apathy but a "living stillness born of trust." (Streams, 4/7) It might not involve the action of prayer or praise. Just being still before the throne of grace. Quieting one's spirit with an open heart. "Utter quietude of soul." 

'O rest in utter quietude of soul,
     Abandon words, leave prayer and praise awhile;
Let your whole being, hushed in His control,
     Learn the full meaning of His voice and smile.'
              (Mary Rowles Jarvis, Streams in the Desert, 4/7) 

A cuppa passivi-TEA is necessary before arising and going forth in one's day, thus assuring that the activi-TEA, that follows is God directed. 

A cuppa passivi-TEA leaves the "dregs of anxie-TEA at the bottom of the cup.

SABBATH SNAPSHOT: "productivi-TEA" not just "activi-TEA"

Mary Ewing pointed out the disparity between the vernacular of the Medicare grandmoms and the language of the young (both moms and singles) she heard at the recent Downline Women's Summit.
"I have been "crazy busy" all week. how about you? Me too---"crazy busy," the young mom answered. These girls have to get up "crazy early" to even have a semblance of a quiet time.
"Crazy Busy!" "Crazy Early!"
Mary thought , "I don't talk like that." 

Me either, Mary. "Busy, certainly. Overwhelmed, at times, but "crazy busy" isn't a phrase in my vocabulary. But God....knows it and even had a young pastor, Kevin DeYoung, write a book with that title, in the lingo of the Generation Y folks.

Crazy Busy, A (MERCIFULLY) short book about a (REALLY) Big Problem. It really is a great book for the "stressed out" of any age.

Beware the Barrenness of a busy life. Remember activity and productivity are not the same thing.(Rick Warren)

"Crazy busy" is defined as frenzied activity---trying to do all one can do in order to impress, please or control others. That type of busyness is diametrically opposed to the "busyness" of Christ, who went about discipling and building relationships.

DeYoung breaks the book down into a simple outline---3,7, and 1; 3 dangers to avoid (chapter 2), 7 diagnosis to consider (Chapters 3-9) and 1 thing you must do (chapter 10)

Questions this book will have readers asking themselves:

When people ask you how you are doing, is the word"busy" almost always included in your answer?

Do I want to keep up this same "busy" pace the rest of my life?

Am I over-programming my children these days?

Am I trying to do what God doesn't expect me to do?

Do I expect to never suffer?
Could I go an entire day without checking my Facebook?
Could I even go an afternoon without looking at my phone, especially when I hear that "text" alert?
Am I more engaged with my thumbs than with my heart?

The "Deep Calls to Deep" chapter had me "thinking" the most because "tech talk is tricky." (p. 78)

As DeYoung says, some things are better because we are wired but somethings are not better. It's the insatiable appetite for constantly being plugged in that has one hungry to be fed the way the Net feeds us----immediately. That seems to be the danger. Most folks now depend on the internet for information and activity. (p. 80-81)

We seem to "keep downloading information, but rarely get down into the depths of our hearts. (p. 82) That's "crazy busy."