I had the opportunity to be interviewed on an Australian radio program this week about my book Rest. It will air in a few weeks, I'll post the link then.

One question the interviewer asked me was, "What do you do on Sabbath? Is it a day to do nothing? Or a day of worship?"

So what do you do on Sabbath-a day dedicated to God, and to rest? I told him it was a day of absolute freedom from "have-to." The Bible says it is not just a day to chill out and do your own thing, and yet it is a gift from God. But as I went through my Sabbath day yesterday, I tried to notice-what is it that I do, on this day of rest? The phrase that kept coming to me was the ministry of availability. I showed up at church, at a neighbor's home, for my kids-and God met me in it. I was not busy going anywhere else, so I could be fully present with the people God put in my path.

So yesterday, I went to church. Later, I brought some of Aaron's outgrown clothes over to a friend for her nephew, and had time to just sit and chat for a while with her. I stopped by at my neighbors', Jeff and Lisa, to drop off a book. And to ask how their daughter Katie is doing-she was recently diagnosed with cancer (see previous post). I had time to visit for a few minutes, to try to listen. There was no place I had to rush off too.

I had lunch with my son at the kitchen table. He went off for a bike ride with his friends, to play basketball with the kids down the street. I puttered in my garden, in a loosely-held solitude, enjoying the sun, the flowers, the feel of the earth in my hands. My neighbor Jeff was mowing his lawn, and he stopped and we chatted for a few minutes. My daughter texted to ask for a ride home from youth group. I was available to pick her and her friends up. I didn't have anywhere else I needed to be.

I did a little weeding, but set no goals. When my neighbors Colleen and Tony came out on their front porch, the dog and I walked over to sit and chat for a while.

I made dinner-pork tenderloin, peas and risotto. Risotto requires adding broth and stirring, slowly and repeatedly, for about 20 minutes. It's a very Zen sort of cooking experience. You have to stay present.  Preparing it feels very loving to me-and nearly impossible on weeknights full of carpooling and work. But on Sabbath, such attentiveness is not only possible, but enjoyable. We gathered as a family around a simple meal, and talked about life, about the coming week, about what we'd learned at church.

After dinner we put a fire in the fireplace, and just hung out together. The kids finished their homework.

Maybe a day dedicated to God is a day that moves slowly enough that you have time to listen, time to be available.  Maybe connecting with God on this day doesn't require effort as much as it requires simply showing up, and seeing Him in the faces of the people around you.

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Keri Wyatt Kent is the author of several books including Rest: Living in Sabbath Simplicity and her most recent release Simple Compassion.
She is a sought-after retreat leader and speaker. She and her husband,
Scot, live with their son and daughter in Illinois. Learn more about
Keri's ministry at www.keriwyattkent.com.

Editors Note:
This is a the fourth in a series of posts about Harry Lee Poe and James Ray Veneman's experience with creating and
publishing The Inklings of Oxford: C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, and Their Friends. This post was written by James Ray Veneman. Enjoy.

“Ready to go?”

These words served as my welcome to Oxford. Hal, Harry Lee Poe according to the cover of the book, only moments after my arrival, was ready to set out. My bags not yet unpacked, and cameras still nestled away, he was fully ready to begin.

Although one might think that some sort of GPS device would be in his hand, or at least a strategically marked map tucked into his pocket, neither was present. Our guide for this adventure would be Hal’s experience, his scores of trips to this completely unique spot on our globe. There were times that it truly seemed that the marvelous magnificence of Oxford was somehow a part of his genetic code. In fact, on numerous occasions as we made our way from one location to another, groups of tourists asked Hal for directions. His explanations, always packed with colorful detail, were so much fun to hear.

Only minutes after Hal’s invitation to begin, I found myself standing in the living room of Walter Hooper. A day or two before leaving on this trip I had re-viewed video material in which he was featured, and now there he was, there I was, it was time to begin. This would be one of the few times on this project that the intended subject was an actual person. Most every other time I pushed my camera’s shutter button, the intended composition included some incomparable aspect of an Oxford structure, a favorite place frequented by the Inklings, or a scene so beautiful it seemed more likely to be imagined.

Prior to this project, my subjects have always involved people and the stories around them. Near the top of the photojournalist’s goals while on assignment will always be to capture the illusive, yet vital, storytelling moment. Often this all-important piece of the visual puzzle is found in the tiniest of detail. An upturned eyebrow, a slight gesture, a subtle change in the light across a subject’s face, or the unexpected collision of activity can become the element that will capture the attention of the viewer and usher them into the realm of the text, the story.

In this instance, the subject matter was as vital as before, it simply took on a new and challenging form. Not long at all into this endeavor I realized that my partner, one who possessed quite a knack for the visual, provided excellent counsel all along the way. Given my lack of knowledge of the various settings and their specific significance, I’m afraid my questions were relentless. I was completely captivated by the stories of where we were, and I am absolutely convinced there is no better storyteller than Hal.

A great example of the way we worked happened the day we visited the Divinity School. I was busy trying to capture interior images, the ceiling, its windows, the fabulous detail, the grandeur of this place, when Hal called me over to a window. Now, to see through this beautiful, but very old glass, one had to be committed. First, I had to step up onto a very small ledge, a little above knee height, in order to inch my way over to the exact position where I was to look. To prevent falling backwards, my left hand gripped tightly a nearby arch, then I leaned as far out as I could to peer through this particular part of the window. As I caught a glimpse of the intended scene, Hal very quietly whispered, “Never before have I seen this perspective.”

As the photograph appears inside the book, it carries the caption, “The round Radcliffe Camera and the spire of St. Mary’s across the fellows’ garden of Exeter College where Tolkien, Dyson, and Coghill were undergraduates.” This photograph captured through Hal’s counsel also appears on the cover.

Scene after scene, the partnership captured far more than I could have alone.

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James Ray Veneman, serves as assistant professor and director of visual communication at Union University. A celebrated photographer, he cover the efforts in Iraq, spending time in Baghdad and on board an aircraft carrier in the eastern Mediterranean. From this, the book A Greater Freedom was produced. Other assignments include the days immediately following the World Trade Center attack and meetings in Cuba with Fidel Castro.

Zondervan today announced that it is moving away from the Pradis software it created and will license other search engines, including the leader Logos Bible Software. Thirty one Zondervan titles, representing 87 individual volumes, will become available for use with Logos Bible Software in early 2010.

News Release | Software Homepage | FAQs

With the focus of reclaiming the sermon as the ancient art form that it is, Rob Bell, Shane Hipps, and Peter Rollins will be spending the first part of this week in Grand Rapids, MI talking with hundreds of pastors.

Last night Rob Bell began by talking about the sermon and its coming “resurgence as the world becomes more twitterized.” He explored what the “sermon” has looked like over the years and what it takes to compellingly communicate God’s message to a world that desperately needs to hear it.

In conclusion, Bell encouraged the pastors in attendance with two key ideas. First, words create new worlds. They create new possibilities for not just solving problems or answering questions but for beginning a dialogue about what the Word says today. The sermon needs to move the Word of God from just words to actual “flesh and blood” action in the hearer’s life.

Second, pastors should preach “not because you have to say something but because you have something to say.” It’s better to preach a message from the heart than to preach out of obligation.

The discussions to follow through out the remainder of the conference will focus on everything from theology to exploring concepts to the practical nature of preaching the word of God effectively today.

If you’re in the Grand Rapids, MI area, I would encourage you to attend the remaining seminars.  Stop by the Devos Performance Hall and get a ticket before they sell out! For more information visit www.robbell.com.