A balm for a weary heart.
Summer is supposed to be the time of slowing down and refreshment. Vacations. Lazy, hazy, crazy days. Days of riding a bike. Watching kids play ball. Leisurely walks. Camping and campfires. Amusement parks. Well…you get my drift. Some of those apply to me; others don’t see the light of day. 🙂
But these past several months have been a blur. Crazy busy is a more apt term. Granted, some of it has been my own doing. Jo and I love watching the kids play ball, but the downfall has been a nightly trek to the local ballfields, lest any of the kids feel left out that we didn’t support them. Every. night. My heart goes out to the parents who have kids who play on 2 or 3 different teams.Â
Add to that the stress of daily pastoral duties: office work, sermon prep, people who need support or a shoulder/sounding board to lean on, and even personal grief (a cancer diagnosis of someone close) and you have a recipe for a full plate or even disaster (I’m nowhere close to that yet).
Enter last night. A balm. A night with friends. Salmon at Texas Roadhouse (my favorite food and place). Laughter. Catching up. Ryan and Amanda have been friends for close to 20 years. They moved away several years ago and my life had a hole. But we get together as often as we can (family and jobs affect that) and we do exactly what we did last night-laugh and talk with no agenda. Sadly, I had ridden 12 miles and climbed several hills during that ride, so my goose was cooked for standing long outside. I had to cut our visit short.Â
The Bible talks about those kinds of friends-those who stick closer than a brother. But one I experienced last night was Pr. 17:22- “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person’s strength.” Even though I was feeling the ride, I relished last night. Laughter was indeed good medicine. It was a balm to a ministry weary heart. Thanks Ryan and Amanda.Â
Be a balm, not a bane.Â
“Be a balm, not a bane.” May we all aim to be that kind of friend, Bill. So glad to know that being with Ryan and Amanda refreshed your spirit and Jo’s. We all need friends like this.
Blessings!
I agree Martha. What a different it would make in people’s lives.
Sounds like last night was just what the doctor ordered! Friends can carry us through when our own strength is waning and can encourage us just by dropping by. Praying for you, my friend!
It most definitely was Pam. Thanks for your prayers.
It was a welcomed and needed for all of us!
Thanks Ryan but you guys were the “topper” of it all.
Bill I am happy you got to spend the evening with good friends and to take some time to relax and laugh. You always have a full plate and are so busy doing so many things, and honestly so many things get overlooked and the congregation is only aware of a few of them. I appreciate all that do, the things I know about and the many things I do not. I aways keep the pastors, elders, and the church in my prayers. Please know I will always be praying for you, and asking God to give you the strength and endurance, wisdom that you need to lead the church.
Gail, your words of encouragement mean a ton. I love being the pastor of OVCF and it is because people like you are praying.