The Unforced Rhythms of Grace

Jozsef Somogyi’s statue of the Tired Man in Mako, Hungary

It is not the unreachable bar of perfection that we strive to attain day after day

The unending race to outpace our neighbors, our competitors or ourselves

It is not the daily grind of constantly trying to achieve and be seen that we need

It is not the frown of some angry and unappeasable god condemning us to perdition

But rather it is an invitation to lay down the heavy burdens of an alien religiosity

And enter into the unforced rhythms of grace, to know the shalom of the cosmos

The kingdom of heaven brought into our midst by the one who comes to take away our yokes

Yokes of wood and iron and steel wrought in our own striving to play god

So that we might look down on the world as its master

The burdens of carrying the expectations of others in the harsh summer of judgment

The expectation that Sabbath is wasted time

That the lords of commerce hold the keys to the kingdom

Come to me, all you who are heavy laden and I will give you rest

I will offer you the rest of creation’s Sabbath

In the wilderness, away from the cries of the city

Come and sit and learn the unforced rhythms of grace

That learning to be the people of God involves learning to rest in peace

That my shalom I give to you, not as the world gives

But in the undying love of a creator that offers the dreams of a kingdom

It is more about surrender and less about control

It is the way, the truth, and the life you seek not for some distant future

But it is an invitation to learn the unforced rhythms of grace

Precisely in your time of being overburdened, tired and beaten down

Enter my Sabbath, my kingdom, take upon you a far lighter and more graceful yoke

And I will give you rest.

Neil White, 2014

Sign of the Rose