THE PURSUIT OF HOLY LEISURE:
Enjoying God in Everyday Places
By Cara Ray
Christian Focus. 250 pages. £14.99
ISBN 978 1 527 114 210
This book’s aim is to encourage the reader to live with a Godly focus in every situation.
It is structured in four sections. The first, which presents an inspiring model for the inner life of a Christian who is intent on having a heart devoted to God, is called “The Hidden Places” and is followed by others working out what this looks like in “The Familiar Places”, “The Hard Places” and “The Fruitful Places”.
The book is relatively long and this, together with the subject matter, means that it will lend itself well to a slow consideration of the contents, whether read privately or with a friend or small group.
It is addressed to a female audience, though the majority of lessons are universally applicable. It is intended as an antidote to fruitless busyness, and encourages the reader to reflect on how activity is carried out rather than simply on the volume of tasks completed. As such it is not only uplifting but also challenging.
The scope of the book is broad, covering every area of life, and could be read with profit by a new believer to acquire an indication of the God-centred nature of her new life; maturer believers can be rescued from complacency by it and stirred to press on, perhaps revisiting areas in which bad habits or thought patterns have encroached. One quibble for this reviewer is the title. A quick search in Bible Gateway uncovered just one use of the word “leisure” in the four most commonly used translations and that was in the ESV for Mark 6v31. As a concept it feels secular and is unfortunate because the author aspires us to aim for the very Biblical attitude of “rest”, which is given to all who come to the One who offers it in relationship with Him.
