The Off Switch

A comedian of my youth once quipped, “Radio [he probably said ‘the wireless’] is a wonderful thing – by turning a single knob you can have complete silence!”  The point of his joke was, of course, the fact that, even after the initial surge of enthusiasm for broadcasting had subsided, the wireless was still very popular: everyone stopped their conversation when it was turned on, in order to listen to the programme.

However, the opposite view of this old saw also holds a somewhat obvious truth.  In other words, silence can be obtained by switching the radio (or other music/noise machine) OFF.  Wherever we go nowadays, it seems, we are bombarded by sound.  Background music is found in many workplaces, shops, motorway service stations and so on.  It seems we can only be really quiet in the depth of the countryside – and that is becoming more and more scarce!

Quite apart from the potential for damage to our ears, constant sound around us has the further property of exclusion – it cuts us off from the distraction of our surroundings.  Students today find this useful when revising.  By the same token, unending music can mask important things, too.  We can the more easily shut out unwelcome thoughts, challenges we aren’t yet ready to face, and so on.  And it can separate us from God.

How often, I wonder, does the pressure of what St Paul describes as ‘worldly things’ deter us from seeking time with God?  We’re only just out of the Christmas season; I have found it useful in recent years to think of all the glitz and razzamatazz that goes on in the shops – and now, of course, on line as well – as ‘Xmas’, leaving the word ‘Christmas’ for the real thing, the celebration of God coming to earth in the form of a tiny and vulnerable baby and living the life of a human being.  Somehow, this helps to counteract the potential for the frills, however sacred the origins of some of them, to shut out the real message.

In our quest for silence are we simply yearning for the impossible, trying to turn back the clock to a past age?  I think not.  Only if we overcome all the distractions can we hear again in our hearts the message the angels sang over those hillsides long ago: “good news … of great joy … for all people”  It was true at Christmas and it’s true every day of the year. 

Remember the off switch: use it at least once every day, and allow God to enrich your life.

Holidays

Our vicar is enjoying a three-month sabbatical, and has just returned from a most rewarding pilgrimage to the Holy Land.  This fact, coupled with the time of year, has sent my mind off in the direction of holidays.

Many years ago, I worked for a Christian who had been invited by a friend to take over his holiday business.  The financial arrangements behind this were way above my head, but I took great interest in accepting the challenge to look after the general running of the firm.  It had two distinct activities: one was the publication and distribution of a holiday accommodation guide, where Christian individuals and organisations could advertise their facilities; the other was to arrange flights much in the manner of any high street travel agent.  To these, we tried to add a third operation, the planning of retreats and holidays with a distinctive Christian heritage theme (although, sadly, this met with virtually no success at all).

In its advertising, we found, this firm had been using what it claimed was ‘the Bible’s only reference to holidays’: “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest” (Mark 6:31).  I’m not sure how justified is any link between that verse and holidays, nor whether the scriptures offer any better alternatives, but there are certainly many Biblical themes that echo holiday scenarios.

Take the Exodus, for a start.  How would you like an extended trek around the Sinai desert, with the personal services of a pillar of cloud as a guide during the day or of a pillar of fire at night?

Maybe you prefer the seaside, or at least the water’s edge.  A number of Jesus’ miracles took place by Galilee, beginning with the healing of Peter’s mother-in-law in the seaside town of Capernaum (Mark 1:29-31).  Jesus was with His disciples on the lake when he calmed a storm (Luke 8:22-25) and no sooner had they put ashore than He healed a man who was possessed by demons and lived among the tombs (which had a disastrous outcome for some pigs!) (Luke8:26-39).  On another occasion, He walked across the surface of the lake to the disciples (Mark 6:45-52).  And, of course, Jesus’ whole ministry was heralded by the baptism of John by the River Jordan (John 1:19-42).

Perhaps your ideal holiday is sightseeing, finding those elusive places of antiquity.  One of the oldest has to be the oaks of Mamre.  They are constantly referred to in Genesis, as the place where Abraham built an altar (13:18), and nearby is the cave of Machpelah, which he bought as a burial place for his wife Sarah (23:17-19).  Jacob’s sons brought his body back and buried him there too (50:13).

If you want to visit friends or family, there is the precedent of Mary’s visit to Elizabeth (Luke 1:39:56).  Whatever you choose, it’s important to travel with a sense of purpose, maybe like Joseph and his family (Luke 2:21:24,41:52) or Hannah (I Samuel 1:1-20).  And don’t forget to make all the necessary preparations and take any gifts that might be appropriate, like those wise men from the east (Matt. 2:1-12).

Of course, in our own day, it’s important – whether as a book or as an app on your phone or tablet – to take the Bible with you.   Remember, God doesn’t take a break from His love for us, so we ought not to take a break in our daily prayers and devotions.

Happy holidays!