What do you do to take a break? We all have times we are empty and tired. We need to be honest, with God and ourselves. Our fast-paced culture tells us to go, go, go. God gives us another message: slow down, rest, recover.

Shelly Esser in her article A Time To Recover, says this, "..The realization hit me...you can't just keep going on to the next thing. Sooner or later there will be some kind of fallout. When I finally opened my hands to release my exhaustion, I found I was also opening my hands to receive God's whispered, "I feel your fatigue and I'm concerned about you.  You need time to recover." He didn't let me escape that truth."

When has God given you the sign that you are doing too much, pushing too hard and failing to take advantage of the rest He offers? Sometimes we even do so much for so long without a break that it makes us physically ill.

Shelly goes on to say, "Scripture has many examples of recovery phases - God rested on the seventh day and Jesus after long days of draining ministry with needy people, slipped away to what? Recovery!  Into the hills ALONE (Matt. 14:23; Lk. 6:12). The dictionary defines recover as "to get back, to make up for, to regain the strength, composure or balance of, to reclaim." Recovery gives us the necessary time to regain our balance, slowly allowing God to put things back together again. Ecclesiastes 3:7 puts it another way, "There is...a time to mend."

What I've been exploring more and more is silence and solitude. That's hard for me in my busy life, but boy is it needed! I need silence to read God's Word, to pray (including speaking and listening). I need the quiet externally so I can quiet myself internally. I've found silence and stillness to be healing. One of my favorites: Psalm 46:10, "Be still and know that I am God." While it may seem that "doing nothing" is a waste of time, time spent in solitude and silence with God is never wasted!

One of the things I love about God's creation is the quiet. Lately, Ed and Neyali have been fishing. I enjoy going with them, absorb the quiet. Sometimes I talk to God, sometimes I read His Word and sometimes I just sit in the silence.

This summer, I urge you to come on Sunday mornings at 9:30 am for worship, and then find some time to rest and recover. How can you take care of yourself? Maybe that's time with family or friends. Maybe it's a relaxing activity. Shelly speaks of a long weekend to visit a friend. She says, "By changing the scenery, I felt God slowly restoring my soul and re-energizing me physically. I didn't have to think about responsibilities; I could sleep in; I could have fun. As Prov. 17:22 says,  "Laughter is good medicine for the soul."

This summer, let's find time for God and for recharging our souls!

In Christ's ministry together ~ Pastor Caryn