Rest for the Weary

Jeffery's Bay: Sunrise over the Indian Ocean

"He gives power to the weak

and strength to the powerless.

Even youths will become weak and tired,

and young men will fall in exhaustion.

But those who trust in the Lord will find new

strength.

They will soar high on wings like eagles.

They will run and not grow weary.

They will walk and not faint."

Isaiah 40:29-31

Here at 13^th FLOOR, the first five weeks of the training period have been intense for all of the students. Actually, intense isn’t a strong enough word - down right exhausting is more like it. This past week, I was sitting on the beach staring at the sand taking in its form. The erosion of siliceous and other rocks over a long, long period of time forms sand. Erosion and change takes years upon years. Often change within a person takes years as well. On the other hand, there are significant acts of nature that dramatically change large rocky edifices into millions of tiny stones.  I feel this later description fits the dramatic nature of pressure and change going on in the students’ lives in the first five weeks of joining the 13^thFLOOR  performing arts ministry. They have been pushed physically, emotionally, and spiritually. In only five weeks we have traversed from casting calls to completing dress rehearsals for two of our four shows. Our daily schedule often begins at 6am and ends at 11:30 pm. They have been challenged daily with teachings and lessons opening their minds and challenging their view or God and themselves. And for many of them, it is their first time living away from home. Many of the students and leaders, including myself, were on the verge of complete exhaustion. But, God stepped in. His timing couldn’t have been better timed.

We all packed our bags, loaded the vans and headed to Jeffery’s Bay for Inofez. Inofez is a yearly conference for gap year ministries to network and learn together. Normally days are jammed full of daytime sessions, nightly worship and teaching. This year, however, there was a lot more free time than normal. God provided a much needed time to rest and refuel. AND, I finally could enjoy time to be relational. It was such a joy for me to see the students lying at the beach, learning more about each other and just simply taking time to rest. As Isaiah 40 says,  “even youths will become weak and tired…(but) He gives power to the weak.” 

We were beyond tired but He gave us exactly what we needed. He truly is a giving God!