This is the final installment of a 10-part series on my 3-month sabbatical during the summer of 2024. This series has two purposes— 1) to motivate and equip others to take a restorative break from work, and 2) to share insights I gained during my time away. To start at the beginning of the series, go here.
Dennis Bland is a mentor of mine. I asked him recently about how he thinks about his relationship with God. He paused to think (as he always does), then said, “Relationship with anyone is about communication— sharing, and listening.”
There are various ways I listen to God. Mostly contemplative prayer, reading, and attending to my intuition and conscience. I also “hear” from God as I immerse myself in nature and listen to music. I share what’s on my heart and mind mostly through prayer and writing (journaling). In another way, I also share through generative endeavors like creating music and visual art.
In the Gospel of John, Jesus is recorded as saying, “I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing.”
To abide means to endure, to remain with, to dwell with.
Some lessons in life I apparently need to learn over and over again. During sabbatical I (once again) learned the importance of abiding. When I notice I’m off-center, triggered, and/or emotionally flooded, I find the one foolproof remedy is to abide. I remind myself of who God is, who I am, and the nature of our relationship. I believe that 1) God deems me (and every other human) as infinitely valuable, 2) God provides for us hyperabundantly, and 3) God has a perfect agenda of reconciliation, aimed at restoring this broken world to a more healed and whole state. Furthermore, I believe that all three of these truths are animated by love. We are valuable because we are loved, the hyperabundant provision flows from love, and the perfect agenda is an agenda of love. Engaging with these ideas returns me to center literally every time I remember to do so.
As a side note about hyperabundance, I’ve come to believe that if I don’t have it, I don’t need it. That’s a bit countercultural (and counterintuitive).
Abiding is restful (“My yoke is easy and my burden is light”) but it also requires inner work— the intentional and recurring choice to abandon anxiety, compulsion, self-reliance, and reactivity. There’s that paradox again— the mix of work and rest. Life (not just sabbatical) requires both, often simultaneously.
One approach I’ve used that helps me interrupt an emotional tailspin is to ask myself, “To what might I be overattached in this situation?” I believe that our dissatisfaction with outer circumstances usually indicates an overattachment to particular desired results. This points to a need for inner work.
In addition to our ability to abide with God (and vice versa), we can also abide with people. I’m finding that what is bringing me the most joy these days is relationships in which I have no agenda. Over sabbatical (and in the months since), I’ve had more opportunities to just be with people. I remember one particular Friday in September (a month after sabbatical ended), in which I had four meetings. At the end of the day, I realized it felt like an incredibly “productive” or “effective” day, but these meetings really didn’t generate any work product, decisions, or new plans. I was just being fully present with people I enjoyed. It made a difference in my life, and in their lives (I think), with no quantifiable outcomes. We all felt seen, known, and loved. I could use more days like that
Summary
- Relationship with God is about communication— sharing and listening.
- Abiding with God returns me to center every time.
- Life requires inner work and rest— a paradox.
- Our dissatisfaction with outer circumstances often indicates an overattachment to results.
- What brings the most joy is abiding with others in no-agenda relationships.
What About You?
I’m grateful for all those who shared their experiences and wisdom with me as I was feeling burned out at the beginning of 2024. The least I can do is provide my best to others who want to have a similar conversation. Now that I’ve guzzled the sabbatical kool-aid myself, I’d be happy to pour you a glass. If it feels like your soul is longing for space and distance (as mine was), you’re struggling to see how you could actually take a sabbatical, and you’d like a thought partner to explore options, feel free to reach out.
If you have any thoughts on this topic, feel free to engage with it over on LinkedIn
Chip Neidigh is Founder and CEO at Kairos, where he and his colleagues help CEOs build elite executive teams. Want to be notified when we post articles that invite a journey into more courageous and selfless leadership? Sign up for The Kairos Moment, our monthly(ish) email alert.