“We must be still and still moving.”- T. S. Eliot
Leighton Ford takes an interlude (“Holy Stillness”) from his discussion of “the hours” in The Attentive Life to focus on Psalm 46: 10- “Be still and know that I am God.” He cites novelist Susan Howatch, who writes novels about clergy in which she talks of “the second journey”. Mr. Ford explains:
“The launching of a ‘second journey’ comes often at the midpoint of life, when our path turns more from the outward to the inward journey, then an integrating of the two, the discovery of what Merton calls a ‘hidden wholeness’ as we begin more and more to become our true selves, to discover the true End of our lives.”
While the launching of a second journey may be chronological in nature, it certainly happens through the spiritual jolt of a ministry downsizing or vocational loss. It is during such adversity that we can become more attuned to the still, small voice of God when we stop and listen long enough to be attentive to what God is saying to us. With fresh intention, Leighton encourages, we can “be still and still moving on into the fullness of what God has in mind.”
Today’s question: Does the concept of a “second journey” help you see your job loss in a more positive light? Please share.
Tomorrow’s blog: “Times of deepest darkness”
