Take a Break!
So Elijah did what the Lord had told him. He went to the Kerith Ravine and stayed there. The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook. 1 Kings 17:5,6
The young man had come to say goodbye. He was due to start a new job in a large secondary school later in the year and now he was going to New Zealand to fly to a remote mountainous area of the South Island. There were no roads in and only a limited number of people were allowed to climb and camp there at any one time. Realistically, we all knew that one would have to be pretty tough to take this on. Yet many of us are who were listening were stirred by a sense of longing. We would like the chance just for a while, to walk away from responsibility and decision-making; to live, eat and drink simply, to sleep under the stars in a beautiful place, without schedules and targets.
Actually Elijah had some huge challenges ahead, but all he knew at the time was that the Lord had given him a break, taken him out of a difficult situation, and made sure basic provision was made for his physical needs.
 Human beings need to escape, to slow down, particularly if they are carrying a lot of responsibility. They need rhythms that allow for days off, for weekends and holidays. Sometimes it is our own fault that we don't take a break when we need one. We allow our resources to be so stretched that when the challenges come we are hard put to meet them. Jesus went out at night and walked up into the mountains to pray and get away from the crowds. He took a boat and a few friends and pushed out across Galilee to find peace and quiet. If he needed to, how much more do we? Go on, take a break!
Author: Margaret Killingray
Copyright LICC and reproduced by kind permission. To receive LICC’s inspirational bi-weekly emails called Word for the Week and Connecting with Culture, email mail@licc,org,uk
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