A Quiet Place

“Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest awhile.”

Mark 6:31

We are in the midst of Vacation Bible School here at Fishers of Men in Sugarland.  In fact we finished day four this morning.  That means there is one day left to go.  The mornings here this week have been busy and noisy, loud and fun – 130 children laughing, crying, singing, in constant motion along with all the many volunteers.  What a joy to have fun telling children about Jesus and God’s love.    It has been crazy fun and crazy tiring.  I can literally see the “tired” in people’s eyes. 

That’s why I look forward to the afternoons around church this week.  The crazy constant motion and noise gives way to almost complete silence around the church building.  It’s a stunning and welcome contrast.  Yes I enjoy both.  I love all the activity of ministry – whether its Vacation Bible School, a Youth Ministry mission trip, a Bible class, or a full Sunday morning.  What a joy to be busy with God’s work among God’s people.  However I also enjoy the quiet moments… the times of silence that help us to spend time with God… in prayer, letting Him re-energize us. 

Sometimes we forget that you need both the noisy activity of life and the quiet place with God.  Too often, we feel guilty about taking those quiet moments away… those moments to just sit and let God speak, let Him give rest to your soul.  It’s as if we think that it’s wrong to take those moments for ourselves…. That if we aren’t constantly “doing” something, we are wasting time. 

That’s why I love this invitation of Jesus in Mark 6.  The disciples and Jesus have been very busy doing God’s work.  The disciples are just returning from a very busy mission trip.  They have been preaching, healing the sick, casting out demons every place they went.  I am sure they were both excited and exhausted…   I can’t help but think of our high school students and Richard our youth minister.  Last week they were on a very busy mission trip.  They came back and jumped right into helping with Vacation Bible School.  That’s what happened to the disciples of Jesus.  They came back from their trip but there was no let up.  Even after they come back to Jesus there are so many people coming to them… they are so busy that Mark tells us that they “had no leisure, even to eat.”  That kind of pace can’t be maintained. 

That’s why Jesus issued this wonderful invitation to His disciples.  “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest awhile.”  Feeling guilty over taking time to rest and be away, is silly.  In fact, what we should really feel guilty about is not taking time away.  Rest is part of the pattern of life.  God created the world in six days and rested on Sabbath. He set a pattern for us.  Indeed, He makes taking that time away a commandment – the third commandment.   I like to think of the third commandment as a gift of God.  He is saying.  “You need rest.  I want you to have rest. This is a gift I am giving to you… a gift you need.  In fact, I am not giving you any choice – Rest.”

I know that all of your lives are busy just like mine – a sort of daily “Vacation Bible School.” You serve God by working, by caring for your families, by being a good neighbor, by your service at church and more.  All of that is God’s work and is very important.  But so is the rest God invites us to.  That rest includes physical rest – take a swim, lay down and take a nap…. Go for a walk.  He also desires to give you spiritual rest – a time to pray, to ready His word, to worship and be fed, to just listen for His still small voice.  That too is God’s work – His work in and for you and me.  It is absolutely essential.  You and I can never do God’s work unless we take the time daily and weekly to let Him do His work in us.  Only having been served by Him will we ever be able to serve Him.  So He invites you and me  daily, as He did His disciples,  “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest awhile.”

I was reminded of this today.  After lunch, in the quiet of the church building one of our members asked me, “Pastor, what are you doing?  Why aren’t you home resting?”  In that voice I heard my savior’s invitation, “Wayne, come away by yourself… rest awhile. This is a gift I want to give you.”  This is a gift He wants to give to all of us.  It’s a gift we can’t live without.  So find yourself a quiet place and take some time to be alone with God.