Release, rest, reset

Many of us are staycationing this year and it’s been great to see people making the most of the beautiful weather and the glorious scenery around us, here in N.Ireland. Beaches have been busy, National Trust sites have been popular, picnics and barbecues have been frequent.

I found that I spent the first part of my holiday releasing my responsibilities – letting go of concerns and leaving my work behind; I spent the middle part resting; and I spent the third part resetting for the new season ahead.

During that third part, I was fortunate to get to spend a 24-hour period on a personal retreat, when I took time out with God to think through where I was at and pray through what I thought he might want the new season to look like.

I would really encourage anyone to take time out to do something similar. It may be less than 24 hours – it may be more. It may be away from home – it may be around home (but most of us find that the distractions of home make it very difficult to create that quiet space that we need). Whatever time you can carve out for yourself and whatever it looks like, it will be precious.

If you are looking for a place to retreat to and you live in N.Ireland, I can highly recommend Murlough House – a beautiful house with gorgeous gardens where you can spend time alone, and the sea is only a few minutes’ walk away so you can enjoy the wonders of God’s creation as well.

If you need some help to know what to do with that time alone with God, you may want to think of taking a guided retreat. Not many retreat houses are offering guided retreats yet because of coronavirus, but perhaps one of my online retreats would help.

‘Come and Rest’ is a free online retreat, encouraging you to respond to the invitation of Jesus to ‘come apart and rest awhile’. It’s available on YouTube and you just need a workbook to guide you through it – you can PM me for details.

‘Grow and Thrive’ starts with John 15 and encourages you to think about how you can grow in your faith journey through the use of spiritual practices. It is also on YouTube, it costs just £15.00 and again there is a workbook to guide you through it.

You could take either of these retreats in a half-day – or you could take them in smaller bites of an hour at a time. You could take one of them with you to somewhere like Murlough House and use it to reflect on while there.

Whatever you do and however you do it, be intentional about seeking some time for yourself with God – you won’t regret it.