September 10, 2017 Romans 13:8-14 I’ve started the count-down to my sabbatical. Nine days from now I’ll start with a week at an Ignatian retreat house on the coast of Massachusetts where I’ll be immersed in silence and imaginative prayer and beach walks. I’m super excited, and also very aware of how much I need this time, although I’m going to miss this place, and all of you, a lot. But as excited as I am, and as much as I know I need this time away, as it gets closer, I’ve discovered that I feel a little sheepish talking about my sabbatical, especially with people outside the church world. This open time in front of me is such a rare and wonderful thing. How is it possible that I not only have the best job but also am part of a profession in which sabbatical time is built-in and understood? So as people ask me what I’ll be doing during my sabbatical, I’ve been feeling this pressure to have something really impressive to announce. Surely during this time I should