It’s funny that
even though I’m overseas working on schedule that changes daily how I can still
make so many things routine. I
still pursue my alone time throughout the day and I like to wake up the way I
want to wake up and mealtime better not be off by 30 minutes because I’m a
growing boy (somewhat…). It’s
interesting that even though I may have escaped the fast paced American
lifestyle, I still can’t escape the mindset.
This past week we
decided to do an electronic fast as a squad. That means no computers or internet, iPods, tv, or anything
along those lines. Our pursuit
this week was intentionality with each other, but also with our time. I was shocked at how much extra time I
had without those things and while the first day may have been tough, I quickly
found it easy to fill the void.
I’ve never had so many valuable one-on-one conversations or actually
enjoyed spending time in a big group before. It’s funny that a few days earlier I would’ve seen those
conversations or games as interruptions in my time, but now I’m seeking them
out.
This all
culminated yesterday, on the last day of the fast when I knew I needed to stay
back from the ministry opportunity.
I’ve been so focused on doing ministry that this was the first day in
almost four months of the race that I’ve taken off when ministry was going
on. I was a little hesitant to do
this because I wasn’t sick and what could I possibly do to be effective for six
hours while everyone else was gone and I couldn’t use electronics? I can honestly tell you that I have
never had six hours go by so fast.
I went up to the
attic to just pray and be in a hiding place even though no one else was
home. I’ve had the hardest trouble
sleeping while here in Romania so I was almost wishing I could just sleep all
night up there and not come down until morning. God had a little different plan, as He usually does. I started praying and about every 20
minutes or so I would just pass out for like 15 minutes and jolt back awake to
continue the prayer I left off on. It was the craziest thing because I’m pretty sure I slept
harder in those 15-minute spurts than I have all race.
After about five
hours of this I rolled out of my hiding place and felt like I had been sleeping
for three days. I was a little groggy
but I also felt so rested that I just walked downstairs and waited for everyone
to get home and hear their stories.
I have never had the urging to do this and I’ve oftentimes seen it as an
interruption to hear about someone else’s day, but I was actually searching it
out, and enjoying it.
I think we have
this idea of rest as sleep, but it’s so much better when it comes in other
ways. Every now and then it comes
in the form of an interruption, but sometimes it comes in allowing yourself to
just stop. Funny how that works…
