The Gift of Restlessness: A Spirituality for Unsettled Seasons

Spiritual director Casey Tygrett upends the notion that restlessness is a sign that we must move up, move on, or move out. Working within the prayerful tradition of writers like Henri Nouwen and Barbara Brown Taylor, Tygrett turns over our innermost questions and holds them up to the light. Where do I belong? What am I here for? Is there enough? And he finds a surprising alignment of these restless questions with the prayer that Jesus taught us to pray. In that ancient prayer's pleas for belonging, purpose, sustenance, mending, protection, and rescue, we find freedom to ask basic human questions and permission to befriend our longings. Each chapter offers profoundly spiritual practices that, when taken together, create a spirituality sturdy enough for our unsettled seasons.

In a culture that values happiness and self-actualization, we often race toward the pat resolution or the quick fix. But in doing so, we miss the subtle gifts of unsettled times. Remaining in restlessness, rather than rushing toward the next job, vacation, or partner, moves us deeper into the life of the Spirit and our own belovedness.