Get Some Rest!
/In Mark 6:31 Jesus said to his disciples:
Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.
The disciples came to Jesus to report on their teaching and what they had done. He knew they were weary, not even having the opportunity to eat, so Jesus and the disciples went away by boat to a solitary place. The people followed them and soon a crowd gathered to meet them when they landed. What happened next was the feeding of 5,000 people with five loaves and two fishes.
Once the disciples had collected the leftovers, Jesus “immediately made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. After leaving them, he went up on a mountainside to pray.”(Mark 6:45-46)
How was Jesus helping his disciples get some rest?
- Jesus knew that the disciples needed a break from all they were doing even when they might not have realized it.
- Jesus urged them to come with Him to a quiet place.
- Jesus was offering them true rest.
What does this mean to us who are constantly giving of ourselves to others?
- We need to be wise and discerning when it comes to taking care of ourselves – sometimes we just need to take a break!
- Taking a break doesn’t always mean getting away to a different location but it could mean finding a quiet place of solitude where your mind, body and soul can find refreshment!
- We may just need to physically rest our bodies with much needed sleep!
Getting back to the disciples in Mark 6, we find that at the end of a very long day, Jesus sent them on ahead of him in a boat. Jesus dismissed the crowds and he himself found refreshment with his heavenly Father in a solitary place on a mountainside.
Are you catching the theme here? It is necessary for us to get some rest, get refreshed and spend some quality time with our Creator! And it may just be in a boat or on a mountainside!
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. (Mt. 11:28)
