Mark’s gospel is a good one for our busy American lifestyles. Mark is mostly interested in Jesus’ actions and so moves faster than the other three Gospels. With words like “immediately” and shortened tellings of our most well known stories, Mark is the gospel for the busy schedule. And we’ve already seen that in chapter 1. In the first chapter, we’ve seen John baptizing, and Jesus baptized, tempted, preaching, calling disciples, driving out demons and healing. In fact, in one chapter, Jesus has done enough ministry that He needs to take a break.
Why do we feel guilty about taking a break from ministry? Why does an hour taken in the middle of our day to rest and reconnect with God feel like “wasted time”? Jesus recognized when He was getting tired and took the time to sit with His Dad and recharge. And when the disciples came to Him with a scolding,”Everyone is looking for you!”, Jesus didn’t respond with guilt, or excuse, but with the vision He received from His Father.
If we truly want to know God’s will and have the strength to follow it, we need to take the time to “be still and know” our God. Whether this is early in the morning, at night before bed, or sometime in the mid-day, time with God is mandatory for His children. We cannot follow a God we don’t take time to know. We cannot accomplish God’s will if we are too tired to act.
When is your time with God? Are you clear about God’s specific will for you? Are you rested enough to accomplish it?
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