Dear Friends,

It’s hard to believe that the summer holidays are now over and the children have gone back to school. Perhaps for the children it doesn’t seem like the holidays were long enough. I attended an American school when I was growing up and I used to love the summer holidays as ours lasted for ten weeks!

However, when we all leave school, the majority of people will have no more than a few weeks holiday the whole year. As a result, holidays are a time we look forward to and enjoy. (Yet, how often do we find ourselves saying within a week of being back, that we need another holiday!) As a church too, there has been the annual summer break from activities but now everything starts up again.

Perhaps one of the most important benefits of holidays is that they remind us of the importance of taking time out to have a break (maybe have a KitKat!) and have a chance to rest. As we head back into our normal routines, let’s look to the example of Jesus to see that it is important ensure that we take time out to rest as well.

Jesus recognized the need for time out. It would be fair to say that no-one had more demands on His life and time than Jesus. Yet, often, He would get up very early in the morning and go off to a remote place to be alone for a while. But Jesus was not all alone for He was taking time out to be with God the Father. Jesus knew that to make it through each day, whether it was stressful or stress-free, demanding or relaxing, He needed to take time out to be with God the Father.
It is my prayer that you too will find strength, refreshment and renewal when you take time out just to be with God. It is time well spent and worth it for as Jesus said, “Come to me you are who heavy-burdened and I will give you rest.” May God bless you,

Paul Wood
Captain