Rest and Recharge

I cannot believe that it is almost July already. That means that the year is a little more than half over. Where did the time go? I suspect it just got ate up in the general busyness of life. I had the opportunity to hear a lecture this year from two people on how indulging in a hobby improved their job performance by keeping them physically and mentally sharp. As I sat there listening on family sailing trips from LA to Oahu and extreme running and mountaineering I thought about hobbies that I have let go and made a mental note to indulge one of these days. I finally had the opportunity to do so with my family and even though it was a bit nerve wracking-wow I had forgotten how much fun it was. I have to do this more often! Even God rested on the Sabbath after His creative efforts perhaps to enjoy His creation. We seem to be so busy going here, there and everywhere or doing this and that, pausing from our everyday lives to rest, reflect and recharge seems to get lost somewhere along the way. There is something to be said for recharging mentally and physically. A side benefit might be that we would even “see” the opportunities for Christ we’re missing because we are burned out on the day to day of living.

So how about spiritually? Do we keep our spiritual batteries fully charged at all times? Christ often went out apart from the crowds and seemingly even the disciples to rest and recharge. It was away from the general busyness and distractions of life that Christ went to hear God’s voice. Did the time away allow Christ to refocus His mind, will and being on doing God’s business? Did the time spent in singular fellowship with God allow Christ to more easily pick out God’s voice when other voices got really loud? As Christ was fully human as well as fully God I think Christ had the same need for fellowship with God that we have. I think perhaps we allow ourselves to get so distracted by just living that we shortchange our relationship with God and end up ultimately shortchanging ourselves. How many of us have ever heard the voice of God? Do we ever get away from life long enough to hear His voice? Have we spent enough time alone with God that we can pick out His voice from the din of competing voices? Have we spent enough time reading and studying God’s word, internalizing it in our very being, so that when other ideas come up we can know whether they are of God or even God honoring? Have we lost our focus on what God wants us to do with our lives, whatever that may be? How much richer and fuller would our lives be if we spent more time with God and a little less with whatever captivates or distracts us from Him the most? Some people seem to have the ability to spend great quantities of time in prayer and study. Sometimes I look at them and get overwhelmed or feel guilty because they seem to be better than me. Do you? We have to remember that what we do is between God and us, not for public show or consumption but to build our relationship with Him. It takes whatever time it takes be it a short or long. David talked a lot about meditating in the Psalms-actively contemplating God’s word, actively fellowshipping with God. His meditation was not a passive emptying but an active filling. The Bible tells us that Christ is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. That makes Him better than our best friend. So how many of us would repeatedly and continuously neglect talking to our best friend, spending time with our best friend, or reading the letter/email that our best friend wrote to us because we were just too busy?