What an alluring invitation: “Come away to a deserted place
and rest a while.” Who wouldn’t jump at the chance for some
downtime? Parents with young children surely would, and
overscheduled students and harried workers. Any of us who
are bone-tired or stressed by the circumstances of our lives.
Apostles too, apparently, with the interesting twist that they
were flush with success.
Left to their own inclinations, the apostles probably would
have continued swapping stories of their first mission trip.
But Jesus wanted them to reflect on their work and—even
with their success—to recognize the need for rest and prayer.
It is a practice straight out of the creation story in Genesis:
on the seventh day God rested.
Of course, Jesus’ invitation didn’t pan out as planned. By
the time they came ashore, their destination was no longer
deserted and the needs of the crowd took center stage. This
development doesn’t undermine the lesson. It is often the
same for us when our quiet time is overtaken by obligations
that we cannot ignore. That’s life, we might say.
But the invitation stands, “come away and rest a while.”
And the creation story is a reminder that we need regular
downtime, not just once a year or every few months. Arranging
our days and weeks so that we can regularly unplug and
rest, if only for a few minutes at a time, will help us recharge
even when we are sometimes interrupted.

Peter Dwyer

Peter Dwyer was the longtime director of Liturgical Press and
founding publisher of Give Us This Day.