Are you on vacation?  If not, picture yourself there.  If it helps, picture some vacation advertisements – a family walking on the beach hand in hand.  A hammock and cold drink.  A mountain, or a city, or whatever means rest to you!

It feels good, doesn’t it?  It’s proven: in a study published in Journal of Occupational Medicine.  Three days after vacation participants reported fewer physical complaints, a more positive mood, and better sleep.

But vacation can’t solve everything.  The study found the big picture of life unchanged from vacation.  There was no change to general life-satisfaction.  Five weeks after the end of vacation only the extent of physical complaints was still significantly smaller as compared to the pre-vacation level.   Everything else was back to normal.      http://occmed.oxfordjournals.org/content/50/3/167.full.pdf

So how do we really rest, if hopping on a plane, renting a cottage or vegetating at home just aren’t enough?

It means clearing our heads and hearts, but not by zoning out, bur rather by focusing them on something else….God!

We asked some people: what helps you clear your head on vacation?

Question: What helps you clear your head on vacation?  How long does it take to distance yourself from work?

Ryan Sim - May 20, 2013

Monday - A New Idea - Priorities

Sermon on the Mount

I overhead some people on a first date talking about what’s important in life. I remember answering questions like that – listing your priorities as a good way to learn about someone. There’s a standard formula. If you’re a Christian, have to start with God. Then you’re supposed to say something about people: family, friends, loved ones. Then finally material things – jobs, posessions, etc. But are they true? Or are we trying to say the right things to impress someone – show that we’re a good date, good Christian, good person? They make for inspiring stories - take the Office two weeks ago: Jim has stepped back from a business he’s started to mend his marriage and work at his old job with Dunder Mifflin. David Wallace, the CEO of Dunder Mifflin, says “Most of the guys I know wouldn’t rearrange their golf schedule to save their marriage”. But what does that really look like in practice? How many times can you sacrifice money for kids before your kids suffer? Would God rather you spend Sunday morning at hockey practice, for your kids physical health, or at church, for their spiritual help? When does God trump one’s kids – only on Sundays, all the time, or never? This kind of prioritizing can leave us feeling like every decision is a competition. We asked some people on the street about their top two priorities in life – and heard about kids, money, health and more. That’s what we’ll look at this week. But instead of a question, here’s your task – list off some important things in your life, and rank them. Think of things like Kids, Parents, Spouse, Friends, Job, Home, Savings, Paying Debt, God, Possessions, etc. Prioritize them – rank them – you’re not allowed to give any ties. We’ll use this list in Thursday’s challenge. If you’re not sure, look at your spending, or use of time through the week. It’s usually a good indication of your priorities in life.

From Series: "Sermon on the Mount"

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