Week 8 in the term seems to be a combination of busyness, tiredness and the need for a looming break. We all experience it - students, families and staff. As senior students prepare for important exams and our intermediate students are fully engaged in AIMS games, it is easy to get caught up in the churn and activity.
In the midst of this busyness, Scripture reminds us that rest is not simply something we earn once the work is finished. Rest is part of the rhythm God has designed for us. From the very beginning, God established a pattern of work and rest, reminding us that our value is not measured by how much we accomplish or how full our calendars are.
Jesus himself modelled this. Even when there were people to teach, heal and care for, he deliberately withdrew from the demands around him. In Mark 6:31, Jesus says to his disciples, 'Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest'. They had been so busy that they had not even had time to eat. Jesus recognised that faithful service and purposeful work need to be accompanied by times of refreshing.
Perhaps that is a helpful reminder for us at this point in the term. There will always be another task to complete, another deadline approaching, another practice to attend, or another commitment demanding our attention. Working hard and making the most of the opportunities God gives us are important, but so too is allowing ourselves space to rest.
For our young people in particular, this is something worth modelling. Rest after work and effort is not laziness. Healthy rhythms of sleep, time with family, prayer, recreation and simply slowing down are important parts of living well.
As we continue to make the most of these final weeks of the term, my encouragement to our students, staff and families is to work diligently, support one another and celebrate the many opportunities before us – but also to make room for rest. May we have the wisdom to recognise when it is time to keep going and when it is time to stop, and in both, to trust in the God who sustains us.
To God be the glory.
Angus Duffett, Acting Principal