February 16, 2022 - Good Morning! It's Wednesday, February 16.
This weekend, the youth from our church are going away to a camp nearby for a retreat. Forty-eight hours of fun and food and fellowship. A couple of days to listen to God's voice and reconnect with Him. A retreat. But that word "retreat" sometimes brings up negative impressions - "Never give up! Never back down!! Never retreat!!!" But in reality, the opportunity to take time away from our busy, cluttered lives to go to a quiet place and relax, recharge, restore, renew - is definitely a positive thing!
Our Heavenly Father knows that we sometimes need to retreat. In Psalms 46:10, He says - "Be still and know that I am God.” In Jeremiah 31:25, He promises - "I will satisfy the weary soul, and every languishing soul I will replenish.” And then there's that beautiful image in the 23rd Psalm - "He makes me lie down in green pastures.” Sounds nice, doesn't it?
Jesus knows about our need to replenish and renew. In Matthew 11:28, He said - "Come to me, all ye who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." And in Mark 6:31, as His disciples have just returned from a challenging time of ministry, Jesus gives this invitation - "Come away to a desolate place and rest for awhile."
Maybe you can't leave town this weekend, like our youth group, but a retreat can sometimes just be an hour on the porch, or a siesta in the swing, or a moment of meditation. We hear the phrase "self care" a lot these days in our culture. It usually refers to our physical and mental health. But we can apply it to our spiritual health as well.
So, make time to relax, recharge, refresh, renew, restore, replenish. RETREAT!!!
Meet you back here tomorrow,
Bro. David
dmathis@fbccenter.org
