I believe this has been my longest “hiatus” away from writing since I began the blog. Sorry to those of you who thought I must have deleted you from the email subscription list!
The reason wasn’t that I ran out of things to say (as those of you who know me well already knew!), but rather that I have been out of my office (and my house) for much of the past three weeks. The first week out was for a trip to Honduras to spend time with a missionary friend who serves there. The next two weeks were ministry conferences and conventions in Jackson, MS, and Alpharetta, GA. It has been a great three weeks, but I am ready to get back into my regular routine. Thanks for the kind words from those of you who let me know you missed the weekly postings!
Getting away from our regular routines does some great things for us – it lets you see new things, meet new people, have new conversations, imagine new directions, perhaps even reset your course if you have veered a bit wayward on the journey. If we utilize the time rightly, getting away can be a time of refreshment and renewal.
–This is a photo of Lake Yojoa in Honduras, which was taken from the “Path to Heaven” Camp area in the midst of a coffee and banana plantation at the top of a small mountain. It was a great place to find a time of refreshing and renewal – at least once you finished the hike up to the top! To give you a sense of the scale/size, Lake Yojoa is about the same size as the Ross Barnett Reservoir in Mississippi.–
Now, I didn’t feel worn down or beat up when I left for Honduras some three-and-a-half weeks ago, but almost four weeks later, I find myself with a sense of renewal and refreshment that I wasn’t expecting. And this sense of renewal is from having new experiences with my friend, with the people he is serving, and with the fellow ministers I have been around for the past two weeks. I now have some new ideas to mull over regarding directions for my life and the life of my church family that I would not have ever thought about in the midst of my regular routine.
Paige and I read Genesis 18 yesterday during our family devotion time. This is the account of God and two angels coming to Abraham and discussing the upcoming birth of Isaac. When he sees them, Abraham asks the Lord to rest for a moment under the tree, to let him bring them water to wash their feet, and some food to give them strength – all so that “you may refresh yourselves.” Abraham wanted them to experience a sense of inner renewal before they continue on with their journey. Now certainly, God doesn’t need rest like we do, but Abraham realized the principles of renewal and rest during the journey.
I thank God for giving me an opportunity for rest and renewal these past few weeks. Even though I wasn’t resting under a tree during the time, the break in the routine provided me with a sense of renewal that I didn’t even realize I needed. But many times we don’t get a week or more to find renewal. Many times we have to find renewal in a lot less time. In fact, some of you reading this might be saying – I need a sense of renewal right now!
So let’s try to help each other by answering one or more of these questions to give some possible renewal ideas to those who need it today: How do you do it? How do make sure that you experience renewal during your journey? How has God helped you feel refreshed in the midst of your walk of life? What practices have you put into your routine so that you take time to feel renewed?
For me in this past three weeks, one of the keys was that I spent time with God-honoring, encouraging people. I spent time with people who were available for me to ask important questions to (and who had time to give me their answers). I also spent time in a new location. I spent time away from my regular routine. And during it all, I spent time hearing from God through His Word, through some Sermons I downloaded to listen to, and through reading some ministry-focused books.
What about you? What else would you add about how do find refreshment and renewal on this journey called life?