Rejuvenation!

Some times a long break with a lot of downtime is exactly what the doctor ordered. After the past semester, I felt rundown, burnt out, and exhausted mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Earlier today I was reflecting on a verse, Ecclesiastes 3:1-8:

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: 

A time to be born and a time to die,

A time to plant and a time to uproot,

A time to kill and a time to heal,

A time to heal,

A time to tear down and a time to build,

A time to weep and a time to laugh,

A time to mourn and a time to dance,

A time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,

A time to embrace and a time to refrain,

A time to search and a time to give up,

A time to keep and a time to throw away, 

A time to tear and a time to mend,

A time to be silent and a time to speak,

A time to love and a time to hate,

A time for war and a time for peace.

Contemplating over the past month or so, I believe this break was really a time to refresh, refuel, and recover. It was different from previous years in the sense that I felt I honestly needed an extended period of time to lie low and not have anything concrete and constructive to do. I needed to let my mind and body rest. Sometimes college and life can hit hard, and it certainly did last semester!

The highlight of break was “Faithwalkers”, a gathering of all the Midwestern Great Commission churches in Omaha, NE for three days. The time is packed full of awesome worship, convicting messages, and lots of reflecting. I’m grateful for how God used the conference in my life this year, I was convicted in many areas of my life, especially prayer, and this conference really helped me get pumped up spiritually for the upcoming semester. It’s exactly what I needed!

After Faithwalkers, I went with 32 other men from Drake on “the Dude trip” to Estes Park, Colorado for four days. It was a fun time with some really cool people in part of God’s beautiful creation. We had many adventures, I’ll be sure to blog about it more in the future!

The last part of break was spent getting good quality time in with family and some friends I don’t get to see too often. For the most part it was really low key, and gave me one last chance to recharge my battery. Today is the first day of the semester, and I’m looking forward to this one so much! My class schedule won’t be nearly as demanding, and I’m excited to see how God will work in my life and in others at Drake!

In Christ,

Mike