Sunday, May 26, 2013 - 6:15 pm

Today, Pastor Kip finished his series about feeling stretched, focusing on being rested. He spoke from 1 Kings 19, from the time following Elijah's great victory on God's behalf, when he was on the run, feeling burned out and isolated. The kind of steps that God took with Elijah are the kind of steps that Kip plans to take as he goes on a 3 month sabbatical, and we can take the same kind of steps when we're feeling exhausted and burned out. We need to restore our physical, emotional, spiritual and relational health. Physically, things like eating and sleeping, and taking care of our body, when done for God, is a spiritual discipline. Emotionally, God is not surprised or put out when we complain or tell Him how we feel. His peace will guard our heart and mind, and He will give us rest. Spiritually, we will often find rest in the quiet whisper, the still, small voice, the nothing. We don't need to be in a large, energetic worship service to connect with God. Relationally, God has put people around us, and we were not meant to do this alone. This morning, I slept in, but woke feeling healthy, happy and rested. I think it was God's timing, giving me an object lesson, and showing me just how important and helpful rest can be.