THE TIDES
«And He said to them, ‘Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while’ » (Mark 6:31).
My friends and I were vacationing south of Devon, in England. One day, we decided to visit the picturesque town of Kingsbridge to stroll along the coast of the estuary and the old pier. The beauty of that area is hard to describe! The water is turquoise, and the hills surrounding the estuary are of an intense green, with sheep and cows peacefully grazing on them. We fell so in love with the place that we decided to go back the next day. To our surprise, when we returned, the water had disappeared. The boats we had seen floating near the pier were now resting on the muddy bottom. All we could see was the exposed bare bed of the river wherever we had seen turquoise water.
The experience surprised me so much that I decided to investigate the matter. Where had all the water gone? Every twenty-four hours, two full tide cycles occur (two high tides and two low tides). In Kingsbridge, the tides are so extreme that, depending on the time of day, there are parts of the estuary that are completely emptied. Visitors who rent boats and canoes to explore the estuary are instructed exactly where to go so that they are not left stranded by the changing tide. Locals are so accustomed to the tide that they plan their activities according to the natural rhythm of high tide and low tide.
Since we live in apartment buildings and use artificial light, we are quite disconnected from the rhythms of nature. We sacrifice precious hours of sleep by pushing the boat, even when the water has already disappeared, and we’re bogged down to our knees. We have so much to do that we think we can’t give ourselves the luxury of resting. However, Jesus gave us a different example. In his book Sabbath, Wayne Muller states that when we see Jesus going away from the crowds and retreating to a place to rest, He was not simply taking a well-deserved rest, but was honoring the deep spiritual need to devote time not only to growth and realization, but to stillness and rest.
Jesus rested not because there was nothing else to do; undoubtedly were myriads of lepers to heal and hungry people to feed. Jesus rested because He understood the rhythm of work and rest. He understood that both high tide and low tide are absolutely necessary.
Dear Lord, please help me honor my need to rest.
When the tide goes down and my energies run out, please help me respect that limit. I want to live with a rhythm of work and rest that is reasonable and sustainable.
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Take From: Devotional Thoughts for Women 2022
«NO FEARS»
BY: VANEZA PISSUTO
Collaborators: Alexandra Pérez & Angelica Cuate.