It is okay to take time to rest, rejuvenate, and reconnect with God.   ~~~   Do you need to take some time? I know I always need more time! If I’m getting ready, I’m gonna need one more minute. If I’m with a friend in deep conversation over coffee, I don’t want it to end. If I’m shopping, my sweet husband knows I’ll always be longer than what I said I would be. On the beach, watching the sunset, I want to stay till the stars come out. I want more time to linger in the moments and seasons that bring me joy. I’ll hang out in those all day long. In those mountaintop moments, the air is clear and the view is beautiful. But, as is life, we find ourselves in the valleys as well. Sorrow and suffering can quickly become our companions as a new day begins.We don’t naturally want to rest in or hang out in those moments do we? When pain, loss and struggle surround me, if I’m honest, I want to blow right by those, push down the feelings, put on my game face and just keep going. Thankfully the spirit gently reminds me what is true in Ecclesiastes 3, there IS a time for everything. Even though life doesn’t stop or slow down for anything, WE should. God is OVER and IN every feeling, every moment and every season. He wants to lovingly meet us, provide for us and hold us in each one. I’ve been in a season like that. This summer wasn’t what I expected. Maybe you can relate. For me, as the school year was coming to a close, my Dad faced an unexpected health journey that ultimately led him home to be with Jesus. We’re still all in shock. While yes he was 77 years old, he was NOT your typical 77 year old. He was something else. The entire month of June was upended. While the world kept spinning around us, time stood still for our family. We were present for the journey and God met us beautifully all along the way. Stepping back in this month with you, I wanted to share some of my journey. The reality is we ALL walk through pain and loss. The rain WILL fall, so when it comes, when the storm that you didn’t see coming hits, what truth can you cling to? I’m thankful for the hope I have in Jesus. That hope, the truth found in His word, is my foundation. A dear friend told me, ‘take all the time you need’. When life gets hard, you have to take the time you need to feel what you’re feeling, process through it as it comes and ultimately give it all to God. Taking time to wrestle through it is so important. Waves of grief meet waves of mercy as our hearts long even more for heaven. I’m thankful Jesus knows, sees and is acquainted with my sorrow and grief. (See Isaiah 53:3) He is with me. And if you read through the gospel accounts of Jesus, you find He always took the time He needed. He took time to spend with the Father, with his friends, he took time with children, he wept, he rested in the midst of storms, he took time to fast, feast, mourn and celebrate. He took time to heal and he also took time to step away from it all.   Luke 5:15-16 Yet the news about him spread all the more, so that crowds of people came to hear him and to be healed of their sicknesses. But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.   The three words I want you to hear today are these, Jesus often withdrew. But people were waiting! Jesus took the time He needed. If He did, how much more do we need to take time when our hearts are broken, when our strength is gone and when seasons of life become the boulders that weigh heavy on our soul. Taking time is not wasting time. It’s a vital spiritual discipline. As we take time away, we too will find our burden lighter and our strength renewed for each new step of the journey. That’s the truth.   Today, take all the time you need. Find rest as you lie down in green pastures. You may not know it, but you need it. Be still and know God is near your broken heart. He sees where you are, what you’re walking through and He wants to meet you in every moment. He’s walking with me through mine and if you’re hurting today, he wants to walk with you too. I’m Lori Cline.