Jesus Rhythms // Mark 6:31-32

Today’s verse comes in the midst of a fascinating series of events. The disciples had gone out on their first missionary journey. John the Baptist had just been executed. People were coming to Jesus with all kinds of requests and His disciples wanted to share their experiences. This is when we read our verse for the day where Jesus got the twelve in a boat to head to a solitary place for some R&R, but the throngs of people knew what was up and arrived first. Jesus took that opportunity to teach them and challenge the disciples to prepare a meal for the crowd. This led to Jesus’ miracle of feeding the 5,000 before walking on water. Yeah, Mark 6 is chock-full of awesomeness! What we can take away in this series of events is Jesus knew the importance of downtime even while He was so busy. He wanted time with the twelve but also time alone with the Father. You and I need the same when we get busy. There are times we think we can’t afford to take breaks when our schedules become relentless, but those are the times we must realize we can’t afford not to rest. Consider Jesus’ rhythm here: He took time to center Himself before BIG events and time to recenter Himself afterwards. This is evident in high moments like hearing success stories from the disciples’ missionary journeys and low moments like the death of his cousin, John. The same is true for you and me. We need that rhythm. We need quiet time to prepare for God to use us and recovery time once the service is done. It is exhausting being a spiritual vessel because we must empty ourselves in order for God to refill us. So, make sure you are following Jesus’ rhythms of taking time alone, time with God, and time with those God gives you to do life with. It’s the only way to navigate the rough waters, storms, and trials of living.