Text and Refelction for March 23-30

"The apostles gathered around Jesus, and told him all that 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 not leisure even to eat." (Mark 6:31-31)

This past week has been a busy week - a Holy Week - but a busy week! Many of us have spent the last several days gathered around Jesus, some teaching, some leading worship, some doing the myriad tasks related to celebrating the great mystery of Easter. As I tried to rouse Andrew this morning he said, "I think after Holy Week should come Sleeping Week when we all get to sleep whenever we want."

True rest is becoming a rare and endangered species for many Western cultures, pushed to the margins of life. There is likely a sense of both hope and guilt when we encounter the invitation to "come away and rest for a while." We may feel the urgent need for restoration and rejuvenation that a deserted place could offer us, and yet we feel the pull of the familiar world of activity through which we often find affirmation.

In Mark's gospel, the disciples have just been travelling about in pairs healing the sick and casting out demons. They had been so busy they hadn't even had time to eat. Their time away with Jesus seems short as the crowds soon find them. The disciples are ready to send the crowds away so that they can go into the villages and find something to eat. The author of the Gospel of Mark then relates the story of the 5000 men fed from five loaves of bread and two fish. Finally, through God's great hospitality, everyone's hunger is satisfied!

Often for me, it seems like hard work to rest in God and accept the hospitality and nourishment that God offers. And so, I often remain tired and hungry. Soon, we will gather as a Sabbath community and share our experiences of resting and our experiences of resisting a rest ;). It will likely mean that we have to work especially hard to prepare for our time away. I just hope we can enter our time together without guilt over what we leave behind and without guilt over how well we've "done" Sabbath.

I look forward to seeing you soon.

Peace,
Amy

http://branemrys.blogspot.com/2006/11/wisdom-from-abba-poemen.html