X Marks the Spot: Blocking Time for Yourself (A Guest Post)
by The Rev’d Dr. Melinda Quivik
Melinda Quivik happily serves as a BsP mentor, the Editor of the quarterly journal Liturgy, a writer, and a supply preacher in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area Lutheran churches. Among her writings are "Serving the Word," "Remembering God's Promises," "Leading Worship Matters," "In Sure and Certain Hope: A Funeral Sourcebook," and commentaries in "Sundays and Seasons: Preaching" and on Working Preacher.
Take Wednesday morning.
On your calendar from 9:00 am to 12:00 noon, make a big X.
You are not available.
You are busy then. You can’t schedule a meeting with anyone. That block of time is inviolate.
Every Wednesday morning (or another time in the week more convenient for you), those 3 hours are your breathing space.
You must make the big X so when someone asks if you have time on Wednesday morning to meet about the church budget or the Sunday School materials or the wedding being planned for next year, you can check your calendar and say: Oh, I’m afraid that won’t work. I have something scheduled for that time.
The Source of this (and other) Wisdom
I learned this practice from Eugene Peterson, of blessed memory whom you may know as a beloved pastoral voice, not only in the Presbyterian Church but for all of us who read some (or all) of his 30 books.
He’s the wise pastor who wrote The Message—one of the scriptural versions we use in Backstory Preaching for Live Lectio on Mondays. He wanted people to hear normal language coming from the Bible and so used common expressions in his translation.
As a new pastor, I read and re-read his wisdom, especially Under the Unpredictable Plant: An Exploration in Vocational Holiness, which explores the role of the pastor through the lens of Jonah. Remember the plant that grew up to shade Jonah when he was so disgusted with the Ninevites for repenting and saving themselves? The plant shriveled so he had no more shade. Sort of like what pastors go through: one minute the people love ya; the next. . . who knows. . .
I was helped by his practical advice. Things like: If a parishioner stops you on the street to make excuses for not being at worship for the last four months, just smile. Then go home and pray for that person. Don’t try to encourage them to come. They will or won’t. It’s not up to you.
That perspective made me breathe a deep relief sigh.
If Eugene Peterson can Do it...
Eugene Peterson was so important to me, I drove across the country (from Montana to Pennsylvania) to hear him at a preaching conference. He gave a talk and led discussion about finding time to get your ministry tasks done.
The room was so packed with eager preachers, we had to move to a bigger venue.
He talked about the very simple practice he and his wife had employed for decades.
On Monday mornings:
·they packed a lunch to go
for a hike
in silence
until noon.
Rain or shine.
Cold or hot.
Didn’t matter.
At lunch, they shared what they had been thinking about all morning.
He told the attendees:
Block off the hours you need.
Maybe you’re going to go to a movie.
Maybe you need to take a nap after lunch every day.
Maybe you just have to re-charge your introverted self after time spent with church folk.
Nobody needs to know what you’re doing.
This was a little shocking to me because I’m a Lutheran kid from the Midwest. We’re supposed to be at other people’s beck and call.
Or so I thought.
And then I thought that if Eugene Peterson—gentle soul, wise teacher, exceptional guide—could block off time with a big X, I could do that, too.
I only ever got my actual weekly work hours down to an average of 55 hours per week, but I had those special hours of silence.
Which we all need in order to know the good news.
Blocking Time as a spiritual discipline
We are tempted to believe the spirit moves by whim in un-scheduled and unpredictable ways.
But Peterson models, and I’ve experienced, that the inspiration and insights of preaching are more often rooted in practices that make space for us to invite and hear the spirit.
Blocking off time in your calendar isn’t an indulgence.
And it isn’t neglecting your pastoral duties to protect those hours.
It’s actually a form of stewardship, a practice of humility, and a gift of openness.
Where can you block off a few sacred hours in your week?