Come Away

I’m in a good place. A God place.

But that doesn’t mean I’m in a great place.

The spin cycle is brutal. I land on my feet most days, but the constant pounding of the agitator (that middle thing in the washing machine that makes your clothes go round) takes me under and leaves me gasping for air on a regular basis.

Moving from a crisis state, back into a chronic state causes things like paying bills, sorting socks and ministry opportunities to rise back up to the surface or at least show up on the radar.

Denial is coming in handy right now. It allows me to wear a number of necessary hats. It allows me to move through my day with some margin of success. Hey – my batting average for teething brushin’ is getting higher.

But denial won’t serve me well for long. My heart and my life are on a collision course. I will blow from the pressure. The internal pain is too great.

Jesus knew the dangers of the internal pressure cooker within every soul.

He knew his disciples. Loved his disciples. He spoke to their deepest needs when stress and exhaustion were rising.

“Come with me by yourself to a quiet place and get some rest.” Mark 6:31b

OK, Lord.

Friday is the day.

I’ve been planning it since last Sunday—as yet another Day of Rest slipped through my hands. (Guilt, no. Sadness for the loss what what I need, yes.)

A team of 3 will care for Josh from 8 to 3.

7 hours alone with the One, the only One who can get me through this and take me to new places because of this.

I need it.

I need to grieve and rage and write and walk and weep.

I need to hear his heart beat.

Do you?

My guess is that I’m not alone.

“Come with me by yourself to a quiet place and get some rest.” Mark 6:31b

Hi There

This is a ministry dedicated to work and rest and the time we spend doing both. Field-tested material (Promise Land: Rest Redefined~Rest Rediscovered) was to be released this Labor Day to all who subscribe. It is still in the works, not far from being done, but now no longer a priority. God recently hit the pause button, however, when our 19 year old son, Joshua, was diagnosed with Hepatopulmonary Syndrome. It’s a rare complication of liver disease that destroys the lungs. A liver transplant is the only treatment. Josh is not a candidate because he was born with Sickle Cell Anemia. We were told in May, Josh had 24 months to live. Through a series of complications and a fire where we live, Josh began a rapid descent on August 2. It hit high gear on August 20 when Josh was placed into Hospice Care. The ministry, the material, the timing is in God’s hands. It always has been. If you sign up for the blog, I’d love to send it your way when it’s done. Here’s how it begins.

 

Promise Land

Rest is not a reward.

You can’t earn it.

You don’t deserve it.

It’s a given. Part of a plan. Free of charge and full of grace, poured out from the heart of God.

Rest comes to us signed, sealed, delivered. But it is rejected. Neglected. Again and again.

Are you numbered in those ranks?

We all are—if we’re honest.

We are made for more, yet settle for less.

This website launched in March 2013. If rest is a topic that grabs your heart, we’d like to encourage you to subscribe to this weekly blog. The information to do so is located on the right hand side of this page. Along the way, we’ve encouraged folks to read the first 12-weeks of posts found in the archives. (But no rush. Go slow.) Start with Week 1 (from March). Each post is numbered and lays an important foundational insight into the life-giving rhythm Run hard. Rest well.

Rest well!

Brenda

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