Relaxing . . .

I heard a podcast by some guy, I don't remember who, it was someone from Lancaster Baptist Church and probably was Cary Schmidt but I can't remember. It was a 1 1/2 hour long podcast and I listened to the whole thing and he said a lot of good things, I'm sure, but one thing, actually the only thing that stuck out to me is that no one can make you not take a day off except yourself, no one can make you neglect time with your family except yourself, no one can make you go too much except yourself. He said that even if you work for a pastor who requires you to work everyday that that is your choice. That is very true. He went on to say there is nothing spiritual in not taking a break. Think about it, even Jesus took a break, going out from the people into the wilderness and then coming back to the people. We have had a great month at Jackson Park Baptist Church, truly a harvest month in October! 20 people have gotten saved and several of them have gotten baptized and several of them are getting discipled! That is amazing! That is wonderful! But just as much as I need to take a break, the people need me to take a break! I wrote a post earlier about the amount of time I spend at church, photography, homeschooling, etc. But at the end of the day, I say to myself "She hath done what she could". I do what I can with what I have, but everyone needs a break. Don't get so spiritual that you won't take the time you need to relax, recharge, reenergize. If not for yourself, then for the precious people you have an opportunity to serve! Take some time for yourself. Get a hobby that enriches you as a person. Do something that is for just you! Take a walk or a run in God's creation, learn to sew, cook a new recipe, learn a new skill, listen to a new cd, get a massage, hair cut, nails done, etc. All of these things are good things. Now's the part where I'm to tell you not to go overboard. Things done in moderation, but you realize we usually say that about fun things, but rarely about work, serving in the church, etc. Have we forgotten that God ordained our walk with Him first, our relationship with our family second, our responsibility to our country third and our relationship/responsibility with our church last! Don't use this as an excuse to miss a regular service, but we need to maintain a balance in our life. This is going to help us a person trying to help other people. Balance is a tricky word. I heard a message that it is not balance but faith in God. When you think of the word balance in the idea of a tight rope walker you get the true picture of balance. A tightrope walker is constantly making adjustments as should we. This is not something that one schedule will fix. This is not something that one seminar is going to correct. This is daily living our lives asking God to lead us and sometimes, and as he did to Elijah after the victory on Mount Carmel he directs us to rest and that is NOT a bad thing! Even God rested on the 7th day! Hmmmmm . . . I think that tells us something about the importance of resting. Here God did this awesome, amazing, wonderful thing in creating the world and the last act of that was to rest?! I know that for about 3 weeks I was sleeping about 2 to 4 hours a night. The rest of the time my mind was racing so fast I couldn't slow down enough to sleep. Finally I crashed, over a period of 3 days it was a slow steady crash. After that I was able to get so much done. My body finally told my brain, "Fine, you're going to be stupid, we're not going to die with you." I have found the key to being able to sleep at night is to sleep at night! That may seem a little too simple but it is the truth. When I get 6 to 8 hours of sleep a night, I'm able to go to sleep the next night! Late nights and early mornings or late nights and late mornings don't get me the rest I need. Take care of your body. It is the temple of God! It was given to you by God to bring glory and pleasure to God but if it is in ill repair how much do you think you are going to be able to accomplish for Him? Every once in awhile it is ok to relax, take a day, half a day, and do something fun or nothing at all. Relax it'll be ok if you do!