God of love, hope, grace and peace – Day 6

The disciples returned from their mission after Jesus sent them out, two by two, to lead people to repentance and to heal them. They tried to report back to Jesus, but they were so overwhelmed by the crowd that there was barely time to eat. Then Jesus took control of the situation and said, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.”

Jesus made time for solitude, despite his busy schedule, but also because his programme was so full. It is this perspective that we struggle to understand – to make more time to be still when our schedules become pressured; so that we can spend more time in solitude.

This time to be quiet is not going to appear from nowhere. It must be created. There must be a conscious decision to make it. You physically need to slow down and stop. In a previous house where we lived, we could clearly hear big trucks down-gearing from high gear to stop at a red traffic light. Like these trucks, we regularly need to down-gear and switch off to be able to rest. It’s only then that we are able to maintain perspective and regain strength.