I used to be a broadcaster. I read the news on the radio. I never saw my audience, but I knew thousands were listening. I can still remember my first newscast in the mid 1970’s and the feeling in the pit of my stomach. I knew that no matter what, I had to keep reading. If I made a mistake, keep going. If you stop talking, you have “dead air” and in radio, that is a cardinal sin. Keep going until you reach a commercial. When I entered ministry years later, I began to preach. I knew that like radio, once in the pulpit, I had to keep going. Only there were no commercial breaks to let you catch your breath. We all have fears in life. How do we deal with the fear of failure?
For ABC news anchor Dan Harris, he had to step back from his life and deal with the voices in his head that constantly told him, “You’re not good enough.” It was a June morning in 2004 when Dan was reading the news and he had a panic attack. In the middle of a story, he stumbles on a word or two, he stops, and looks down. He knows he is in trouble, so he bails out of the newscast. Meantime, the video from the next story about a new Harry Potter movie begins to roll, but Dan cannot read the copy. He calls it the most humiliating day of his life.
For Dan Harris, he began a “journey of discovery” to find out what was wrong and how he could fix it. That journey led him to counselors, to pastors, and finally to the Buddhist art of meditation and mindfulness where one is encouraged to look at their life and their failures and do it without judgment. Harris even wrote a book called Ten Percent Happier, in which he tells his story and now has a podcast. During the pandemic, he has encouraged people to care for themselves through meditation and other habits such as virtually connecting with friends and doing acts of kindness.
In this season of Lent, we need to care for our souls. One of the spiritual disciplines you can do to quiet your soul is Christian meditation. It’s similar to what Dan Harris practices but different in important ways. Prayer is the discipline that focuses on the interactive relationship we have with God. Christian meditation is the listening side of this interactive relationship. How often do you take time to practice this discipline of being quiet and listening? Lent is the perfect time to start this discipline. Jesus reminds us that He is the Good Shepherd and that His sheep know His voice. His voice is not hard to hear; His vocabulary is not difficult to understand. One of my favorite scriptures is from the Psalms, “Be still and know that I am God.” Take time in Lent to grow still and believe God has something to say to you.
Rev. David Poteet, Pastor of Congregational Care
