Laziness is next to Godliness?

There are four months of the year that are hard to figure out because the the switch of the seasons happen in them. March we we move from Winter to Spring, September we move from Summer to Fall, and December we move from Fall to Winter. June is probably the hardest of the four for me. I think the reason is that there is so much change that happens during the month. We wait for school to let out, perhaps the first camping trip, the weather changes, and the desire to enter into that Summer laziness. I long for that summer slowness, that time to relax and enjoy what life has to offer. I wonder if it is time to reflect on the power of laziness - the health that can come from doing nothing. 

Pastor Scott Brents, who serves Camano Lutheran Church, just returned from a vacation in Greece and told us this story:

I have a smart watch that I use to track my health. One of the apps that I check regularly is one that tracks my stress level. It rarely showed that I had a low stress level. I sort of thought maybe the app just wasn't that trustworthy. Until we visited the island of Ikaria. Ikaria is one of the "blue zones" of the world where the people regularly live long lives. We were told to be ready for a slow pace, that people on this island are rarely in a hurry. In fact, they told me that when we got to the dock and our guide was not there, that we were just to wait and they will be along shortly. On our second day there I checked my watch for my stress level and was astonished to see that it barely registered. And I was not surprised. It is astonishing what happens when you lower all your expectations, stop being in a hurry, and live in the moment. 

Some in this would call the people of Ikaria as lazy. They are not in a hurry. They do not pine for industry or "getting ahead." They drink herbal tea and nap often. Everything about how these good people live is antithetical to the ideals that I learned growing up - to be busy, to be productive, to not sit around and do nothing.

I wonder if my frustration with the month of June is that maybe my body longs for the slower life. I know what all the arguments are out there counter to this longing. All the what ifs out there. But, when I think about what God is calling us to, I can't help think that it might be a lot like Ikaria.

Sweet is the sleep of laborers, whether they eat little or much; but the surfeit of the rich will not let them sleep. (Ecc 5:12)

God consistently warns us of the vanity of lives lived for toil only. There is a constant call for us to take Sabbath, to take time to lower our stress. God knows us all to well. God knows our penchant to think our value is tied to how much we toil. I will leave you with one of my favorite jokes that exemplifies this ideal:

An investment banker was at the pier of a small coastal village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked.  Inside the small boat were several large yellowfin tuna.  The banker complimented the fisherman on the quality of his fish.

The banker ask asked, "how long did it take you to catch them?"

The fisherman replied,

“only a little while." 

The banker then asked, "Why don't you stay out longer and catch more fish?" 

The fisherman said, "I have enough to support my family’s and sell a few."

The Banker then asked, “But what do you do with the rest of your time?”

The fisherman said, “I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take siestas with my wife, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine, and play guitar with my amigos.  I have a full and busy life.” 

The banker scoffed, “I am a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing and with the proceeds, buy a bigger boat. With the proceeds from the bigger boat, you could buy several boats, eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman you would sell directly to the processor, eventually opening your own cannery. You would control the product, processing, and distribution. You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to a big city where you will run your expanding enterprise.”

The fisherman asked, “But, how long will this all take?”

To which the banker replied, “15 – 20 years.”

“But what then?” asked the fisherman.

The banker laughed and said, “That’s the best part.  When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich, you would make millions!”

“Millions – then what?” asked the fisherman,

The banker said, “Then you would retire.  Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take siestas with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos.”