Gò0dNews for Everyone
Do You Need a Rest from Your Vacation?
T
by Dr. Alan D. Hix
he first week of July is a time when more Americans
The Israelites had been slaves for over 400 years,
take their summer vacations than any other time.
working endlessly, day after day. Now that they were free
Families will book their vacations a year in advance,
to build their own society, God blessed them by declaring a
and when it arrives, they try to cram in as many activities
day of rest. Like Christopher Robin, people spend too much
as possible. They arrive home Sunday night exhausted, and
time trying to get to the next moment that they miss the
then they have to drag themselves back to work on Monday.
present moment.
More than once, I have heard people complain that they need a vacation from their vacation! If the purpose of a vacation is to “rest” from our work, why do we work so hard to make our vacation an “amazing getaway,” only to get home never really having “rested”? In the movie Christopher Robin, Winnie-the-Pooh declares that “Doing nothing often leads to the very best something.” Christopher Robin desperately needs to hear this, because he gets so wrapped up in life and work that he forgets to have fun. He never does “nothing” because he is running from one responsibility to another. Does this sound familiar? From the beginning, God designated a day of rest. “And on the seventh day God finished his work that
We should take time to really listen to people without working on how we will respond. We need to stop and
he had done; and he rested on the seventh day from all his
really look at the world around us and marvel at its beauty
work that he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and
and complexity. Now that we are on the other side of the
made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that
pandemic, we can touch again. Take the time to shake
he had done in creation” (Genesis 2:2-3).
hands, hug, and put your arm around those closest to you.
This time of resting was so important to God that he
And when you go to church, take time to really listen
included the command “to honor the Sabbath Day and keep
to the prayers that are offered. Give your heart to singing
it holy” in the Ten Commandments. Later in Deuteronomy,
the praises of God regardless of whether you are on pitch
when Moses is reminding the people of this, he gave them a
or not. Engage your mind fully as the Scripture is read and
reminder to “remember that you were a slave in the land of
wait with expectation for God to speak to you as His Word
Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out from there
is proclaimed.
with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore, the
Take time to engage in wonder that God loves us so
Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day”
much that he gave us his most precious gift, at great cost to
(Deuteronomy 5:15).
himself. Take the time to do “nothing,” and see if you don’t
While we may not have the luxury of ceasing all activity,
discover “the very best something.”
appreciate the moment. Christopher Robin is so busy trying to be successful at work to get ahead, that his wife Evelyn chides him with “Your life is happening now, right in front of you.”
24 // July 2022
About The Author
we can approach our lives with the practice of taking time to Dr. Alan Hix is an Associate Professor of Christian Studies at Shorter University. In addition to being and educator, he has served churches as a pastor, been involved in mission trips to Africa, Canada, and Alaska, and participated in archaeological excavations in Israel for several years.
