Being a joint newsletter I am tempted to double up on my word count. The other thought was to try and jam in double the wisdom (I can hear you scoffing so stop it).
The funny thing is after last months comments on the weather, today it is currently lovely and sunny (it may not be as you read this). Summer evokes in us good feelings. Sunshine somehow lifts our spirits and seems to bring life to what was dreary and barren. Plants bloom. All kinds of creatures, big and small, are about. All is right with the world?
Summer also heralds the holiday season. Now time off is vitally important to our sanity. In church life it is just as much a weekly event as a yearly two weeks away in Benidorm. The word used often in churches for this time is Sabbath. The God given time for rest. It may sound an outdated and odd word but it is a recognition that God really knows us and what we need. The weekly Sabbath no longer has an important place in many of our lives but we cannot disagree with the fact we need and long to get away from it all. We all need to relax and refresh our minds and bodies. Interesting given the amount of preparation required. Often a mad capped dash to an airport and all the stress that involves. The maddening realisation that everyone in the world has chosen to use the same bit of road you are currently on.
I would like to ask a question of us all. A question we may very rarely ask ourselves and it has to do with what the Sabbath was also about. What does a holiday do for our souls? The Sabbath is not only a time of rest for the body but a chance to recharge ourselves spiritually. For us to come before God, without all the normal daily routines and allow Him to recharge us. For us to recognise what He has done for us in His son Jesus Christ. That He has given us this amazing world to live in and that it is all for our benefit to enjoy.
We are supposed to have time to stop and think. Whether we are on some white sandy beach or in a B&B in Skegness, can I suggest we all ask ourselves the question why are we here?
Love
Jason, The Man in the Manse