rested

6/14/11 My breath prayer for the day comes from Genesis 2:3, So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it God rested from all the work that he had done in creation. I am not very good at resting. My earliest memories are of getting up early in the morning and running after my daddy trying to keep up with him as we worked on the farm. That imprinting has been reinforced by being the eldest son and feeling responsible. Further I grew up in the church hearing the stories of how we are to take care of the vulnerable ones around us. So, I became a help-aholic. To paraphrase Will Rogers, I never met a need I didn't like. And we live in a world of infinite need. I have gotten lots of affirmation for doing nice things for other people. But I also grew weary. When I hit age 50, and 25 years of ordained ministry, I took a sabbatical summer, 9 weeks off. I found that I could rest....and that the world kept spinning...other people could fill needs....I didn't have to work all of the time. Today, I can still lean to the over-functioning side of the equation, but I have learned also how to rest. If God can do it, surely I can too. May you also be rested.

Love,
Lynn