"Come away....and rest awhile"

“Come away… all by yourselves and rest awhile” (Mark 6:31)

We seem to be living in a more and more rest and sleep deprived society all the time.  We have ever more advancing technology to help us do our work but yet there still seems never to be enough hours in our day to get the things done we need to do, or we keep adding more and more things to our already too full, to-do lists.  In the gospels we hear often that Jesus would after a busy day go of to a deserted place to rest, or get up early in the morning to be alone to pray, he was very intentional about this, but he also invited the disciples to do the same.  In Mark’s gospel after the disciples had gathered around Jesus telling him all they had done and taught, he said to them, “Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while, for many were coming and going and they had no leisure to eat.”(6:31). Now I don’t know about you but that sounds to me very much like the society we live in today, in the door, grab a bite to eat if you got the time, or grab something to go and out the door again. The part however about coming away to rest awhile we seem to omit, or think we don’t need to pay attention to; and usually if we do go of somewhere, for what we call getting away for a time, we fill it with so many activities that we come back more harried and tired then when we left.  Recently I had the opportunity to do just that, to go away to a quiet place to rest. I took some personal retreat time and stayed for a few days at St. John’s convent in Toronto, and while there my days took on the rhythm of the sisters at the convent, which meant it was mostly silent, even the meals were eaten in silence.  Coming from a very busy parish life, at first the silence felt uncomfortable almost overwhelming, but I soon realized how much I needed this time of rest and quiet, and the feeling was soon replaced with one of gratitude for this time of solitude. “Come away and rest a while.”  Jesus understood the disciples need for rest and replenishment in their busy lives, and he understands our need too. Oh, I know not everyone can just go of to a convent somewhere to have that place of solitude, but we don’t have to. It could be as simple as closing a door to the outside world for a short time, shutting down our social media sites, or turning of the phone for a few hours.  Doing that regularly enough, and soon you will realize just how much you too need that time of rest and feel better for it.  Yes, Jesus was very much aware of the demands on life, after all there was no one ever more in demand then he was, and if he could take time out of his busy schedule, then surely we ought to be able to do so.  “Very early in the morning when it was still dark, Jesus withdrew to a solitary place to be alone with God” (Mark 1:35). “He went to the mountain alone and spent the night in prayer” (Luke 6:12).  And he taught his followers to do the same. “Come away by yourselves to a quiet place and rest a while” (Mark 6:31).

What are you looking for?

What are you looking for?  It's a given in life that we are all looking for something. Some are looking for a better life, better health, more money, a better job, more peace, and I can go on and on. But just what is it you are looking for? For the most part, we all can come up with something or some idea of some thing that we believe we are looking for that will squelch that yearning or longing for something more, only to find out that when we have discovered what we think it is, the longing just doesn't go a way.  In the gospel of John, John the Baptist giving witness to who Jesus was went out and testified to what he saw, saying, "I did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me! he on whom you see the Spirit descent and remain is the one who baptized with the Holy Spirit. And I have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God."  The next day when he saw Jesus coming, John says, "look, here is the Lamb of God," and it says two of his disciples left and followed Jesus. Did they know what John was saying when he called Jesus "the Lamb of God", did they know even exactly why they followed after Jesus, probably not.  But there was something so convincing in What John had said about Jesus, that they had to go and find out for themselves just who Jesus was, they wanted to know.   When Jesus turned and saw them following him, he said to them, "what are you looking for". The disciple perhaps unsure, or uncertain as to what it was they were looking for, simply respond saying, "where are you staying." A simple request indeed to ask, where are you staying and one that usually brings just as simple an answer, I am staying at such and such a place, or with someone, or a general street address, but Jesus gives none of these. Instead he answers 'come and see'. Come and see, words that not only express an invitation but also words of welcome? You are welcome to come and see for yourselves, I don't have to tell you, you are welcome to come and see where I live, and make up your own minds as to what it is you are looking for. I think that is how Jesus relates to all of us, with an invitation to "Come and see". Jesus doesn't tell us what it is we should be looking for but allows us to discover what it is for ourselves. The disciples went with Jesus, stayed with him for the whole day, one of them even noted that it was 4:00 0' Clock in the afternoon. What they discovered made such an impact on their lives that the exact time of day it occurred was never forgotten.  Jesus words, his teaching no doubt revealed all that they were looking for, longing for in the Messiah, and they  had no need to go back, to return to John for what they were looking for was found in Jesus. We too will find what it is we are searching for, seeking in our lives if we respond to his invitation to 'Come and See'.  "Andrew went out and found his brother Simon and told him, 'we have found the Messiah and he brought  him to Jesus. Jesus seeing him says, "you are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas, which means Peter." Like the new name He gave to Peter, signifying the new life he would have as a disciple of Jesus, so too are we changed, made over, given new life through accepting Jesus' invitation to us to 'Come and See'.

Blessings, 
Rev. Hannah+

New beginnings!

It's the beginning of a whole new year and so along with that comes a lot of new possibilities and hopes and dreams, but as always with the beginning of anything, we look back reflecting on the past as to how it might make way for the future, it can be positive in taking from it what was good and learning from what was not so good that it might make way for better times and opportunities ahead, or we can allow the past to impact the future in a way that is not positive, not good. And so looking back I reflect on the past year in a way that I hope it brings nothing but good to the new. In the past year, at the beginning of the year in my ministry having to deal with so much death, and sadness, it felt almost as if there was no opportunity for joy, with the darkness feeling so overwhelming at times that it felt there was no getting away from it.  Yet reflecting back on it now I can see very well the light of Christ shining forth in the darkness, strong and vibrant even though the light at times seemed only a glimmer it was there pulsating, shimmering, bringing hope even in the darkest times. In the strength and courage of those experiencing such darkness hope was revealed, and in my efforts to support and uphold that hope in ministering to the families going through such difficult times, I too experienced God’s presence in very powerful ways.  John in the first chapter of his gospel says, “the light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not overcome it.”  Darkness can very will overcome the light if we give into it, if we allow the darkness to overtake us, but it is hanging on to that last sliver of hope, even when it doesn’t make sense to do so at times that the light takes hold and the darkness eventually must dissipates because the light makes more sense to hold onto.  When I think about hope as Christ light shining forth in the darkness, I often think about entering a totally darkened room and striking a match to light a candle and watching the flame as it ignites to reveal the objects in the room, in the shadows.  The light doesn’t have to be very big but still it overcomes the darkness, and the darkness no longer feels so threatening.  The soft glow of the candle flame not only makes a way to move through the darkness but provides warmth and comfort along the way, and I think hope in the same way acts as a light, dispelling the darkness of the moment but also giving way for new opportunities to grow in the experience of God’s love revealed to us in Christ Jesus. And so I pray this year will bring new hope, new possibilities, new beginnings that will reveal the light of Christ breaking forth in our world in new and powerful ways.   

Blessings for the New Year!
Rev. Hannah+