Reflection
The summer solstice has passed. We are officially into summer now. It’s time to think about relaxation and rest for a while. As Joan Chittister has written:
We drive ourselves from one exhaustion to another. We pace our societies by the pace of our computers. We conduct the major relationships of our lives—both professional and personal—according to the speed of our communications. We measure ourselves by the amount of our productivity and every day we become more exhausted, less rested in body, spirit and mind, and so less capable of producing things, let alone of developing relationships, as a result. That’s not irony, that’s tragedy. And though we know it, we do not know what to do about it.
Maybe we need to make some time for reading and reflection. Maybe we need time to turn off the computer and TV or stop texting. Is it time to connect more with family and friends? Is it time to rest our minds as well as our bodies? It’s almost July. Summer will pass quickly. It’s important to make time and space to enjoy life and to rest.
Prayer
Be still before the Lord.
Psalm 37:7
Action
Review your habitual day. Are you distracted and weary? Where can you make some personal time for physical and mental renewal?
Suggested Reading
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
Matthew 11:28
Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.
Mark 6:31
Let us beware, brothers and sisters, of efficiency. Let us put a halt to the frantic running around dictated by our agendas.
Pope Francis
Wisdom is knowing when to have rest, when to have activity, and how much of each to have.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Burnout is more of an issue of poor energy management and low clarity than of over-giving.
Brendon Burchard
It’s precisely those who are busiest who most need to give themselves a break.
Pico Iye
We must always change, renew, rejuvenate ourselves, otherwise we harden
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Don’t confuse the need to rest with the desire to give up.
Craig D. Lounsbrough
Rest leads to renewal of spirit, soul and strength.
Lailah Gifty Akita