Front Porch Sittin’

One of the things I love doing in the summer is “a lotta front porch sittin’”. Feet propped up on the table (don’t tell my wife), glass of lemonade in my hand, and a good book to while away the time. It doesn’t get much better than that!

In this busy world we live in, downtime is a precious commodity. We’re always rushing someplace, as Alan Jackson puts it, “tryin’ to make a livin’”. We’re so busy being busy we hardly have time for the things that really matter, like our families, our friends, our God. In working so hard to make sure we don’t miss out on the good things of life we run the risk of missing out on the best things in life.

Jesus understood this. That’s why one day He said to His disciples, “Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.” (Mark 6:31 NLT). The Bible goes on to explain that “He said this because there were so many people coming and going that Jesus and his apostles didn’t even have time to eat.” Sound familiar?

Jesus knew that his disciples, even though they were doing God’s work, were in danger of burning out. They needed to get away from the hustle and bustle to recharge and refocus. The same holds true for us over 2000 years later. We all could use more “front porch sittin’”.

Even God Himself rested. Genesis 2:2 tells us, “On the seventh day God had finished his work of creation, so he rested from all his work.” Then He went one step further and “blessed the seventh day and declared it holy,” forever setting it aside as a special day for us to “rest awhile.”

If the Son of God felt the need for a little downtime, don’t you think it might be good for you too? And since our Heavenly Father set aside a day for us to get that rest we need so much, shouldn’t we take advantage of it? 

The Sabbath is a day to step away from our busy lives and for 24 wonderful hours just Stop, Look, and Listen – stop our rushing to and fro, look around us at the beauties God has made, and listen for our Father’s voice. There’s so much He wants to say to us.

So, this week, when the Sabbath rolls around, why not accept Jesus’ invitation to “go off…to a quiet place and rest awhile”? You don’t have to go far. Any quiet place will do. As for me, I’ll be right here with my feet up, ice-cold lemonade in one hand and a good book in the other, doing my favorite thing in the whole world, “a lotta front porch sittin’”.

Wanna join me? Come on down!