There I was. The new pastor in a lovely church, full of wonderful people, in a small town community. Life felt laid-back, and I loved being able to walk to my office every morning and smell the fresh country air while listening to the birds chirping and the farmers running their equipment in the distance.
I had my mug of coffee in one hand, and my keys in the other. I’d wave either to the couple on their morning walk, or the man with his two small dogs as they walked by – depending on how late in the morning I was that day. I would unlock the church doors, swing around the desk in my office, pull out my tablet, and turn on some music to begin my work.
And two hours later, I was zoning out and felt completely drained.
It was embarrassing! I honestly don’t know how I was able to go so many months without forgetting to write a sermon, or neglect a Sunday Evening study, or show up late to a board meeting. I felt like I was running on fumes 24/7, just barely staying above the fray. “How,” I wondered, “are other pastors able to keep up the pace with all of their commitments, and I can’t even make it to lunchtime!”
When I began my pastorate, I informed my board that Tuesdays would be me “off” days. It worked. That is, until I would get asked to lead a devotional at the local Senior Living facility. “Well, that’s just in the morning. I can do that and then rest. It’s only for a month at a time, so it’s no big deal.” Except, instead of resting myself for those days, I would spend all of my time trying to unwind from the morning’s devotional. Not very restful.
Then, other events started coming up. The parishioners of the local Catholic church kept asking me to come to Mass on Tuesday mornings with them. And other pastors in the area would schedule meetings on Tuesdays. And so on and so on… The frustrating part is that I wanted to do all of those things, so I rarely turned down an opportunity to lead a devotional for the elderly, or attend Mass.
However, rather than building up my ministry, using my Tuesdays – my designated rest times – only served to hinder my ability to minister. I was worn-out every week. Yes, I had a “day off” every week, but it wasn’t restful. And, truthfully, it wasn’t even a “day off.” I continued to allow it to be interrupted. That’s when I learned how protective I had to be of my own rest. No one else was going to do it for me. Something had to change.
That’s when I decided to get real with Sabbath. Because I enjoyed the Tuesday events, I change my weekly Sabbath day to Fridays. I told the church this was my Sabbath day, and directed everyone to contact the secretary if they needed something and the secretary would contact me in an emergency. I never committed to a Friday event (unless it was a rare occasion), and I refused to even go out of my house so that I could avoid being pulled into pastoral work (everyone in town knew I was a pastor, so I had to really shut myself away so I could shed my pastoral duties).
When Thursday night came, I would shut off my phone. I only turned it on twice on Fridays to check for emergencies. I didn’t check my email, didn’t go on Facebook, and only went outside to work on my garden. Instead, I engaged in restful activities (well, they’re restful to me); I would do the dishes, maybe clean a room or two, but most of the time I would listen to music, play some games, watch a movie, and generally detach myself from my responsibilities as a Pastor.
It was truly a day of resting from work. I refused to let myself do any activity that caused me stress. And you know what happened?
Suddenly, I wasn’t so tired at work anymore. I was able to go a whole month – even more! – without feeling like I needed a vacation. I was getting all of my work done, and catching up on the back-log of unfinished projects I had built up. I was more productive those 6 days of the week than I had ever been working all 7, and I didn’t feel drained!
Why? Because once Friday came, everything in my world stopped. I forced myself to rest. I even got in the practice of taking a bath at night with all of the lights off, putting myself into a sensory deprivation, until I had completely lost track of time, just so I could get my mind to relax. But, that’s what I had to do. And the other 6 days of the week thanked me for it.
Rest isn’t easy. It’s funny how we all desire rest, but yet so many of us actively resist it. We continue to find excuses to not give ourselves permission to do it. “There are a million things that need to get done,” we say. And it’s the truth. There is always a good reason to not rest.
But, that doesn’t mean we should avoid it.
Rest is a discipline. A discipline that is so easily neglected, but so very necessary in our lives.
I know the Lenten season has already started, but if you feel led I would encourage you to begin practicing a day of rest during Lent. See for yourself the difference it can make.
Strait Talk 