I am so tired! So tired of the news that only highlights the terrible things happening in this world. So tired of smear campaigns that don’t address real character issues but focus on unimportant things. So tired of running a race of life that someone set into motion but that seems so unhealthy and unimportant. So tired of Social Media and the pressures it brings on everyone.

So, yesterday after church we had lunch with friends and then drove into nature to see the green rolling hills, the flowers and the beauty of creation. I needed to ‘check out’ for a few minutes to just remind myself that there is more to life than what social media and the news deem important. Getting away always makes me wonder why we run that rat race, why we take so little time to rest and restore. What drives us?

For me it is that I believe a better world is possible for people on the margins, for me it is that I want people to experience the Shalom (wellbeing) of God in every aspect of life. But if I am honest in the process of pursuing that, I myself often lose that Shalom. I often enter the same rat race as others who pursue personal gain. What is wrong with me?

Last week I had a small medical scare (eye problem) and the fear of not being able to read well, or see the beauty around me clearly made me worried and was quite stressful. It is in those moments that I turn to God more, but also recognize the fleeting human life.

We were talking with friends the other day about getting older and quality of life etc. (yes, we are starting to become ‘those’ people), and we realized that none of us know how much time we have. With all the health issues in our world, all the shootings and accidents and calamities, none of us knows how much time we have.

So should we not adjust our lives and step out of the rat race? I am not talking about becoming hermits, but being more aware of our surroundings, taking the time to look the person in the eyes and making a deeper connection, taking the longer way home to enjoy the beauty around us. Should we not step out of the rat race of the news and the social media, not putting our heads in the sand but choosing our input more carefully?

Would I be less tired if I didn’t try to keep up socially? Would I be less tired if I would take regular time out to see the beauty around us, eat the wonderful foods more purposefully? Would I be less tired if I spent more time to listen to good music, enjoy friends and family, and live a life of purpose?

The news cycle will go on, but I don’t have to be living in that world. Being informed is good, being overwhelmed by it is not. I can’t fix the world. I will do what I can in my little part of the world to see Shalom happening, to point people to a deeper purpose in life, and to find rest for my own soul.