I’m always deeply comforted by these words of Jesus: “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” (Mark 6:31)
This was the Lord’s instruction to his disciples during very busy days with many demands on their time. I feel I’m on the edge of this regularly. Maybe you do too.
The busyness of life, personal challenges of all kinds, and the chaotic social and political shifts everywhere threaten to extract every bit of our mental, physical, and emotional reserves. Jesus’ response to weary disciples gives us a way out of the fray and a way back in with renewed capacity.
Here are a few thoughts on how we can be with Jesus by ourselves and get some rest.
An important aspect of our lives as disciples of Christ is to receive in our hearts what we know and believe about the Lord and his wonderful kingdom. This requires silence and attentiveness to his Word.
Here is a place to begin. A simple first step is to take unhurried time regularly through the week to be with the Word of God. It doesn’t have to be long, but it requires that we be attentive. This simple practice will give us words of life to ponder and draw from through the day. I call this R&R — Read & Receive. It can also stand for Rest & Recharge.
A second step is to pause and respond with prayer to what was planted in our heart by the Word of God. This too can be brief, but it must be sincerely from our heart. It’s not like planning our day with the intention of doing this or that if we can. This is a prayerful commitment to what God has spoken in his Word. It may lead to humble confession and repentance, to confident petition for what is so needed, or to extravagant praise to the Lord of our lives.
A third helpful step is to take a few minutes to write down what the Lord spoke to us and how we will respond and follow through. The simple exercise of writing down these words will help to fix them in our thoughts so that we may remember their significance at the opportune time.
In Mark chapter 4 Jesus presents the Word as seed. Think about it. A seed that is planted will bear more fruit than its humble appearance would suggest. Jesus says that if we receive the Word of God, it can bear fruit up to a hundred times what was sown. The simple practice of coming to him in the pages of Scripture to rest and recharge plants that life-giving seed in the soil of our hearts where it will produce a good harvest.
One of the very good things we can do for ourselves in this draining world is to be daily with the Lord and his Word to receive inwardly what we need most.