Psalm 55:6-8  I said, “Oh, that I had the wings of a dove! I would fly away and be at rest. I would flee far away and stay in the desert; I would hurry to my place of shelter, far from the tempest and storm.”

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Some friends are enjoying their first day in Italy today. They have been there before. It is their happy place. They will also spend a few days in Santorini, Greece before returning home. They have been planning this trip for nearly a year. It arrived at the perfect time. 

The last two weeks have been particularly stressful for them. Their work world has been turned upside down due to someone else’s sin. They have had to work double-time to manage the necessary issues arising from this unplanned interruption. 

We celebrated our thirty-fifth wedding anniversary in Italy last fall. We celebrated our thirty-seventh wedding anniversary last week. COVID kind of messed up our travel plans. Even so, it was a trip worth the wait. Returning there for a few days would be nice. A few days in Santorini would be a special treat. Santorini is said to have the best sunsets in the world. 

Sometimes a strategic retreat is just what the doctor ordered. A high-capacity leader who has been highly successful in her work talked about how sick she became a few years ago. Doctors ordered lots of tests. However, they could find no underlying cause for her symptoms. 

One wise doctor looked her in the eye and told her she had Hurry Sickness. She was doing too much. She was not resting enough. His prescription sounded something like today’s Bible verses. 

What if you and I did less but better? 

What if we took eight full hours for sleep? Then eight full hours for work. On top of that, eight full hours to read, write, walk, talk, and laugh? 

What’s stopping us? 

Italy and Greece sound great right about now. So does Riverbend Retreat Center and a monastery an hour or so outside Metro Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. So does a cabin in the mountains near Durango, Colorado. 

Sometimes an hour of quality napping in your favorite easy chair is all the escape necessary. 

When and where will you fly away for rest and restoration? How will you eliminate unnecessary hurry from your life? How will you talk to God about “the tempest and storm.”

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I will step away from the tempest and storm for rest and restoration. 

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Our Father, bless us each with strategic retreats, time away to rest, to pray, to move, to play. Fill our days with luxuries like books to read, notes to write, and meals to enjoy with loved ones. Give us unhurried moments full of wonder and simple pleasures. Teaches us again the rhythms of grace. Amen.