Holidays.  Vacation.  Getaway.  Escape!
Whatever you call it, Walter and I are going to do this thing!
Although my grandfather is bedridden in the Weyburn General Hospital, we are going ahead with our winter break.  We will not be more than a day's drive from home so, should anything transpire, we can be back for a funeral.
But this thing most people take for granted - vacation time - many of us in ministry or mission work, have a tough time knowing how to truly take restful time off.  We expend so much time and energy into our ministries that we find it difficult to disengage from people's lives and our responsibilities.  It takes us a few days to unwind, to slow our mental and physical pace down to relax.
And then there is the guilt we sometimes feel for taking a vacation, pampering ourselves, when many of the folks we minister to are living in poverty and do not have such a luxury as a vacation.  I know many families who save up or spend what they don't have to go to the Exhibition (Regina's annual fair) and that is their one "fun" expenditure of the year!
Or we feel guilty for leaving people behind who are in crisis, whom we are spending regular time with to help them formally or relationally with counsel and care.  How can we treat ourselves to fun and rest when others are suffering?
Sometimes, we don't know what to do with our leisure time.  Walter and I have worked at our hobbies in recent years.  That may sound strange to some of you, but we had to give ourselves permission to pursue activities or pastimes that were totally unrelated to ministry.  Years ago I took a creative writing class; Walter took photography courses.  We both paid curling fees just because we loved curling and it was a good thing to exercise and have fun with people not connected to our regular world.
Now that our kids have their own lives, Walter and I have also had to rediscover what we would enjoy for a vacation time that was just the two of us.  No more McDonald's Playland stops or Science Centres with kids zones.  We can choose adult-type activities that are age-appropriate for us old folks!  And so we need to find out just exactly what we are interested in.
One of the things we are doing is stopping at places we have seen along our journeys but always whistled by because of schedule.  We spent a couple hours at a small town along the TransCanada that had an "Antique Car Museum".  It was fun to take our time and not have kids/teens saying "I'm bored!  When are we leaving?"
I have been reading a few books on the Sabbath, taking care of ourselves in ministry and how to replenish ourselves spiritually when we are so focused on giving out to others.  I don't need to be convinced of our need for a break.  I just pray that we can put into practice some of the practical things we have learned about rest and relaxation...
The verses I have meditated on lately are Matthew 11:28 & 29 and I believe Jesus invites us to rest in Him.  His yoke is easy, He says.  His burden is light.  So when we are NOT taking adequate breaks to refocus and rejuvenate, we are carrying our own burdens and putting on our own yoke.  The ministry is the work God has called Walter and I to do.  But He promises to give us rest as we come to Him and work in His yoke which I understand to be His job assignments for us.  I am still wrestling through what that means for me, for us.  I want to take His promise seriously to experience REST.  I know that means a lifestyle of serving Him with balance of work and breaks.  And I'm pretty sure it means to keep the perspective on responsibility:  what is mine, what belongs to others and what is completely up to God?  Because having these areas out of balance will mean I burn out!
As we pack up our Jetta and drive away tomorrow morning, I am anticipating God's hand of blessing on this ordained holiday.  He is our Father, the giver of good gifts to His children.
Bon Voyage!