Summer’s Invitation to Rest

I used to work with a guy who always announced with pride that he never used all his vacation days. I kept my thoughts to myself.

I take all my vacation days. Every last one. I consider them a necessary gift that re-charges my batteries and restores my soul.

When God created the world, He built rest into the natural order of things. Evening. Sabbath. Seasons. Festivals. Jubilee. In order for us to be everything we’re intended to be, God knew we’d need regularly scheduled times of rest.

In fact, He commanded it.

So how did it ever become a badge of honor NOT to rest (or take a vacation)? When did taking time away come to mean someone isn’t dedicated or hard working? How did rest and relaxation become the same as laziness? Busyness is a way of life. Rest? We don’t know how to do it.

In her book When the Heart Waits, Sue Monk Kidd talks about visiting a monastery to see about reversing the “quickaholic” tendencies of her life.

She found it tough. Even sitting at the edge of a quiet pond, she found her inner chaos welling up. She needed to keep moving, to act, to solve something. She got up and she gave up. She didn’t know how to rest.

On the way back to her guest quarters, she saw a monk doing exactly what she was incapable of.

Later, she asked him how he could possibly sit so still. How could she get used to doing nothing?

The monk grinned. “Well, there’s the problem young lady. You’ve bought into the cultural myth that when you’re waiting, you’re doing nothing. But when you’re waiting, you’re not doing nothing. You’re doing the most important something there is. You’re allowing your soul to grow up. If you can’t be still and wait, you can’t become what God created you to be.”

It’s summer. A season I look forward to each time the calendar flips to it. But the question for you and me is this: Will we allow some “vacation” to sit quietly before the Lord and, as the monk challenged, let our souls grow up?

The joyous work of loving our neighbor—of noticing them, loving, praying for, serving with, and welcoming them—is not meant to be done without the help and strength of the Lord—help we will find in Him if we take time to rest and be filled up with His presence.

This summer I challenge you to that. Take some time off. Even a weekend, just a day. Will you recharge yourself?

The joy of the Lord is our strength.

Be intentional on grabbing some stillness this summer and remind yourself that He is God.

Rest a bit. He’s got you covered—He loves those you are walking alongside even more than you do.

Jeff Klein
Q Place National Church Partnership Director