Mark 6:31: He said to them, ‘Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.’ For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat.
Mark chapter 6 is a busy narrative and it provides the seeds for this third in my summer series of thoughts.
Jesus is rejected in his own hometown. The twelve are sent out in pairs to preach and heal. John the Baptist is killed after the political manoeuvring of Herod’s court. Then the disciples return to Jesus, full of news about all they have done and taught. There is truly a lot going on.
But there is no space. People are coming and going. The needs are endless. Mark tells us that they do not even have time to eat.
So Jesus says, “Come away … and rest a while.”
It is a short sentence but meets a need that it may have been tempting to ignore.
The other day, walking beside Martlesham Creek, I stopped to watch some swans paddling among the weed, searching for food. From a distance they looked calm and graceful. Yet close up, there was effort, movement, and the tangle of the weed and water around them.
I think sometimes I appear like those swans; do you? Others think I am coping whereas when I get tired, I also start to feel overwhelmed. We appear calm while underneath, we can be working hard in the weeds of responsibility, worry, care, and constant activity.
The summer break gives us a chance to step back.
Not only to rebuild our bodies, but to refresh our minds. Not only to stop doing, but to begin seeing again.
When we have space, we may notice what we have been carrying. We may see more clearly what matters, what can wait, and what God is quietly showing us beneath the surface.
Still water is not always easy to find but when it comes, even briefly, it is a gift. Jesus’ invitation remains gracious and practical: “come away and rest a while”.
May the summer give you a moment for spiritual and mental rest to restore balance to pressured lives.
A Prayer – Lord Jesus, when life feels crowded and our minds feel tangled, help us to hear your gentle invitation to come away and rest. Give us space to breathe, stillness to see clearly, and grace to trust that we do not have to carry everything at once. Refresh us in body, mind, and spirit, and show us what matters most beneath the surface. Amen.