I am sending this from England where I am privileged to be enjoying a sabbatical, a time of rest and reflection, prayer, and learning, that clergy try and take every few years, (though this is my first in my 26 years of being an Anglican Minister). Next week I fly to Mombasa, Kenya, to preach, pray, visit, and learn from ministers in the Anglican Church of Kenya.
I don’t say this to make anyone jealous – but to give some background as to what I’m about to say. I’m on a break, yes, but also a working break. It’s been fun to show my partner, Sabina, some of the places of my younger life, and to catch up with friends and family, but I’ve also been reading, writing, interviewing clergy and college principals, and spending time out in reflection. And I’ve realized how little of that I do when I’m embroiled in the usual routine, the busy workweek, the everyday demands of life and work.
We are constantly encouraged, from our days in school, to our time in the workplace, right up until retirement and beyond, to be active, to be busy, to ‘climb the ladder of success’. Adverts on billboards, online, in newspapers and magazines, all tell us how much more we ‘need’ - how we should look, live, spend, what we apparently should own.
Being able to take time out is a gift that allows us to assess and take stock of ourselves and our lives. Taking time for ourselves is not selfish, it’s spiritual – something which Jesus and his followers and friends did repeatedly according to the stories of the Christian Scriptures, we read again and again of Jesus withdrawing to a quiet place by himself, or taking his disciples to a place away from the bustle of the everyday for time out of the usual. It was these times of reflection and what we might call now ‘self-care’ that equipped him for the work he did in teaching, healing, and caring for others.
In our busy world and busy lives, taking time out might seem to be a luxury we can’t afford, but perhaps not taking time out is something that costs us even more. It doesn’t have to be a long break, a few minutes in each day, an hour where we disconnect from our social media, or streaming services, or whatever. I realize how easy it is to fill my day, even when on a break like this one, with distractions and busyness – but I also realize that when I do take those few minutes to myself, when I do sit and do nothing, or read, or pray, or draw, or just think – then my energy, my attention, and my sense of well-being is vastly improved.
Martin Luther, a priest and one of those who began the reformation of the Church in Europe, is reputed to have said “I have so much to do today that I’m going to need to spend three hours in prayer in order to be able to get it all done.” And by prayer he didn’t mean just talking to (or at) God, but silence, singing, and eating the bread and wine of Holy Communion. It’s said that he got up at four in the morning to make time for these things. I’m not recommending such early rising for all of us (I think sleep is a blessing to enjoy!), but paying attention to our need to take a short break is something all of us could benefit from.
The Ven. Alastair Singh-McCollum is Rector of St. John the Divine Anglican Church in Victoria and Archdeacon, Diocese of Islands and Inlets. He has a passion for the Gospel, motorbikes and bike culture, worship, philosophy, theology, guitars, single malt whisky, real ale, cinema and all things French. You can find Alastair at the church website: and on his blog:
You can read more articles on our interfaith blog, Spiritually Speaking at /blogs/spiritually-speaking
* This article was published in the print edition of the Times 91原创 on Saturday, October 29th 2022
