Then Jesus said, “Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.”
Mark 6:31 (NLT)
Rest. Just reading that simple, four-letter word puts a smile on my face. I envision a clean house, three kids who are getting along, a lawn that’s been mowed and the weeds hacked down, the checkbook reflects a decent balance, while I bask in the sun with a cup of tea in one hand and a good book in the other.
But that’s just wishful thinking. Truth is, my house is far from orderly, money seems to fly out the window faster than it comes in, and I’m constantly washing clothes, dishes, and floors. The housework never seems to end; the yard has turned into a jungle, the warning light on my car dash alerts me of impending doom, and, at some point, pizza has become one of the major food groups.
We all need time to rest and unwind. But somehow, we parents rarely make the time. We run from one activity to the next, so busy making sure our kids don’t miss out on ‘opportunities’ that we run ourselves ragged. Unfortunately, this ‘busyness’ trickles down into every area of our lives.
“For many of us the great danger is not that we will renounce our faith. It is that we will become so distracted and rushed and preoccupied that we will settle for a mediocre version of it. We will just skim our lives instead of actually living them.” (1)
Jesus offers a better way of living. He invites us to be strategic in our choices, to carve out moments of quiet and rest amid the tumult of life.
Truth is, the enemy wants us so knee-deep in the ‘urgent’ and the ‘important’ that rest seems more like a luxury than a necessity. He wants our schedules to control us instead of us controlling our schedules. He will throw anything at us, just to prevent us from prioritizing rest and time alone with God. Because he spurns those moments of silence, moments when our minds are left ajar for God to speak into our lives.
Today, take a few minutes to go off to a quiet place and rest awhile. No cell phone, no distractions. Just you and God. Don’t talk, just listen for the voice of God and gather fresh strength for the days ahead.
Make it a daily priority.
After all, you can’t pour into others if your vessel is empty.
(1)John Ortberg, The Life You’ve Always Wanted: Spiritual Disciplines for Ordinary People (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2002), 38-39.