“Every person needs to take one day away. A day in which one consciously separates the past from the future. Jobs, family, employers, and friends can exist one day without any one of us, and if our egos permit us to confess, they could exist eternally in our absence.”
― Maya Angelou
I caught myself last Friday at 5:00, driving home, saying in my Jeep, “Get the f*&% outta my way you slow muthuh-f*&%ers.” Not my inside voice. Out. Loud. In other words, all you peeps need to get out of my way so I can get shit done. How many ways am I whackadoo in that brief snapshot of my Friday!? For those that say “I would never say or think that,” you’s some lying muh-f*&%uhs.
This followed on the heels of a discussion with my Friday men’s group about the idea of resting. As in, how often do we actually take time to halt the busyness of life? The back and forth centered on the Biblical concept of Sunday being a day of decompressing, replenishing, and thanking the Lord. We are to follow what God did on the seventh day, not that I think He’s in need of naptime like us. He was setting a precedent for us to follow in Genesis 2:2-3,
“By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.”
The dialogue that Friday morning was rich. A couple of us said our go-go-go culture and insistence on pushing past the the need for rest and sleep, is a symptom of not trusting where we are in life; therefore we have no time turn off the motor. The clock is ticking, I’m running the show ― not God ― and I’ve decided I’m behind in the game for that day, week or decade. Isn’t that the deeper issue? A toxic and frenetic pace to arrive at some destination we’ve convinced ourselves will provide complete happiness. It seems to be a race to accumulate a significant savings account for retirement, and then enjoy the good life. The concept brings pause, particularly in light of a recent lunch where I heard a no-nonsense-focus-on-the-right things pastor say, “Good luck finding scriptures on retirement.” Confused, nervous laughter followed from the audience.
So then, what are we racing and resting towards? Is retirement the goal? It depends on who’s running your life. If you buy into the idea of work hard so you can play hard to cash out and count seashells on the beach with piña colada in hand; then giddyup and push hard to achieve a comfortable life.
Or we can look to scripture as the proper lighthouse for which direction to sail. If we decide to make God and His word our final authority, a new finish line consumes our vision, from 2 Timothy 4:7-8,
“For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”
If there’s a question as to what race Paul is referring to, we jump up a couple of verses to the beginning of the chapter where he says in verses 1-2,
“In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preachthe word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.”
“I give you this charge.” Scripture is fascinating when the revelation occurs that the verses are directed towards us. Paul and Timothy were not super Christians donning tights and capes. They were normal schmoes like you and I. Which means God is telling us the same message He told them. Our focus is to be all about the Gospel.
Let me be clear. There are seasons of life where work must end, and a transition is needed. That time will differ per person based on their wiring and chosen field. The primary point is that yes, we should ease up and rest in trusting the Lord’s chess moves in our lives. At the same time, don’t look at this life as the one that counts the most. The logic seems irrefutable: if heaven is real, and eternal, and this life is at best 80-90 years tops, then we should follow Paul’s charge to Timothy, and see our work on this side of heaven as an environment to affect others in the name of Christ. For me, I’ll look for opportunities to “preach” or explain the value of scripture, and try to turn my gaze outward to sacrifice for friends and strangers. It’ll be messy, and my selfish navel will fight for gazing, but my goal will be rest in the Lord. As David said in Psalm 62:5-6,
“Yes, my soul, find rest in God;
my hope comes from him.
Truly he is my rock and my salvation;”
See ya next time. ML