In his book Out Of My Mind, Joe Bayly told of a pastor friend who had three sons. When two of them began to stutter, he took them to a speech therapist. After evaluation the counselor spoke to the pastor and bluntly told him that it was his own neglect that was responsible for the speech defect.

"When did you last take your family on a vacation?" the counselor demanded. It had been a long time. The minister had been too busy to give any time to his family.

The pastor admitted, "I'm ashamed of it now, but I can remember saying quite proudly to my congregation, 'The devil never takes a vacation, so why should I?' I never stopped to think that the devil wasn't to be my example." He began spending time with his family.

After the sixth day of creation, God rested (Gen. 2:2). He declared the sabbath to be a day of rest for Israel (Ex. 20:8-11), and He decreed that even the land should rest every seventh year (Lev. 25:3-4). In the New Testament, Jesus took His disciples to the mountains to rest (Mk. 6:30-31).

Don't focus on your work at the expense of the people closest to you. Take time out to rest. Nurture your relationships. Follow the right example!  — David C. Egner