Well the following verse in Ecclesiastes could be one of the most depressing in the Bible. Really it could.
Ecclesiastes 1:1-18
All Is Vanity
1 The words of the Preacher,[a] the son of David, king in Jerusalem.
2 Vanity[b] of vanities, says the Preacher,
vanity of vanities! All is vanity.
3 What does man gain by all the toil
at which he toils under the sun?
4 A generation goes, and a generation comes,
but the earth remains forever.
5 The sun rises, and the sun goes down,
and hastens[c] to the place where it rises.
6 The wind blows to the south
and goes around to the north;
around and around goes the wind,
and on its circuits the wind returns.
7 All streams run to the sea,
but the sea is not full;
to the place where the streams flow,
there they flow again.
8 All things are full of weariness;
a man cannot utter it;
the eye is not satisfied with seeing,
nor the ear filled with hearing.
9 What has been is what will be,
and what has been done is what will be done,
and there is nothing new under the sun.
10 Is there a thing of which it is said,
“See, this is new”?
It has been already
in the ages before us.
11 There is no remembrance of former things,[d]
nor will there be any remembrance
of later things[e] yet to be
among those who come after.
vanity of vanities! All is vanity.
3 What does man gain by all the toil
at which he toils under the sun?
4 A generation goes, and a generation comes,
but the earth remains forever.
5 The sun rises, and the sun goes down,
and hastens[c] to the place where it rises.
6 The wind blows to the south
and goes around to the north;
around and around goes the wind,
and on its circuits the wind returns.
7 All streams run to the sea,
but the sea is not full;
to the place where the streams flow,
there they flow again.
8 All things are full of weariness;
a man cannot utter it;
the eye is not satisfied with seeing,
nor the ear filled with hearing.
9 What has been is what will be,
and what has been done is what will be done,
and there is nothing new under the sun.
10 Is there a thing of which it is said,
“See, this is new”?
It has been already
in the ages before us.
11 There is no remembrance of former things,[d]
nor will there be any remembrance
of later things[e] yet to be
among those who come after.
The authors seems to talk about the meaninglessness of life, of routine of the rivers pouring into the sea but the sea never rising. How work never seems to be done. how knowledge and wisdom in the end seem meaningless. In short...Many times I feel this way. I have been on this earth a while now enough to realize that I get burned, I lose my joy, I find most things meaningless. The joy of my salvation really seem to be distant and even dare I say sometimes unimportant to my daily life. I know all of this is not true but there are times I am just tired of the world around me.I long for escape and I long for Jesus to redeem this place. Depressing isnt it:) Pastors arent ever supposed to feel this way. Were the ones close with God, nature and people at all times. the reality it is the loneliest position on the earth for many of us. This week I got into the middle of 12 conflicts between believers.. yep that was a depressing week. it makes you wanna crawl up in a hole and hide..Or maybe fly to a desolate beach and sit:)
Now before you think Ive gone off the deep end into a deep dark depression, understand this is something Satan loves to use this on me and others. The times I get to feeling this way I know I need rest. For me rest has to be away. And I mean away from everything, My job, my responsibilities, My house, My local culture, my stresses, some of my family members( had to say it), my good friends.. I recharge by getting away. The funny thing about me also is I actually get energy from my job. I love being at the office , I love what God has called me to do. But there is a reason that life insurance and job burnout turnover for pastors is in the top 5 of professions. I see the guys leaving the ministry all the time because they have not taken care of themselves with the demands of the job. I want to be in this profession for life. But I want to be healthy as well. I need rest. I need time far away. Rest is an important part of our health. God did it in creation, Jesus did it "often". Some could argue the man with nowhere to lay his head was a constant traveler. (please dont call heresy on that one it was meant to be funny) We can make every excuse i n the world to not take a trip, or rest, or Sabbath. I did. For about 9 years I didn't. I worked and worked and worked and guess what? There is always more work. You know what? Your never done. You never arrive. You need to take rest. Rest for your body, mind, soul, family and for the health of your workplace. take time to think pray and just be. Take time to be present with your kids in a different place. take time to celebrate your marriage and reconnect. take TIME to get out of the normal routine and do the work of REST!
LUKE 5:16 But Jesus often withdrew to the wilderness for prayer.
Mark 6:31 ESV
And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat.
Psalm 127:2 ESV / 84 helpful votes
It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep.
Mark 6:32 ESV
And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves.
Hebrews 4:9-11 ESV / 40 helpful votes
So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.
The second part of this travel passion it is really just getting to do things that I hear people say Ill do this when Im retired. I get this. I said this for many years when I was in construction. The funny thing is I also have seen people never get to live out a bucket list. I had the privilege of working with pastor dick johnson. This man loved the outdoors, He loved vacations. He would tell me all the amazing plans he had for retirement. Sadly/happily within a few years following that he was in real paradise with Jesus.One time on a hike in Hawaii with my wife I saw a couple from our hotel. They were turning back because they couldn't make it to the waterfall. they just weren't physically able to. That was a lightbulb again for me. My kids being able to see different places and cultures. To understand that the God we serve is still God in different cultures and places really has helped their faith too. (ill blog about this one later) I really believe vacations provide lifetime learning opportunities for our kids in a very meaningful way. Many people who have grown kids tell me when the reminisce with their own kids many memories are around Holidays and also vacations. I want my kids to see the world out there both good ,bad ,ugly and insanely beautiful. Growing up as a child in a poor home of a single mother, I really didnt get to see the world, or really anywhere. We were to lucky to have the rent paid so we could eat. I know many people are in that position as well. I get it. But for me I found a way on a youth pastors salary to do it. I really work hard to do it. In my next blog below Ill give you some of the how toos of my travel plans.
HOW DO I DO IT? BRASS TACKS FROM A GUY WHO LIKES TO TRAVEL WITHOUT BREAKING THE BANK
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I have become a vacation expert in many cases because I made this a priority. Many people think I spend ridiculous amounts of cash on a vacation. The reality is I have found other ways. I find deals. I like to research for other people deals and this helps me plan. I took my kids somewhere tropical cheaper than someone camping for a week on the coast. Sometimes I do have a little more of an expensive trip but only because I have budgeted for it. Since everyone always asks I ll give you real life example of how I vacation on the cheap.
First understand I kind of always make a three year plan. I mainly use certain credit cards to build up points for three years to get to a certain destination on travel rewards. I always allow flexibility in case any special deals come up. A quick example is one time I realized that taking my family of 4 camping in our trailer was costing us about 100 bucks a day per person with gas food and all stuff we bought or did. ( i know people do this cheaper) But after research I found I could do a cruise for 65 bucks a day per person. My choice is the cruise!! So this does mean a lot of planning and saving. Iknow where im going for three years(with some flexibility built in.)
Second. Know that I travel in off seasons, always. I dont go anywhere in the summer or winter. I usually keep travel to May or September through 2nd week in November. Almost everywhere you will find fares and hotels half to more off than during summer. Yes, I do take my kids out of school,Yes they make up the work, Yes they are still learning great stuff on a trip. Take your kids to see a Mayan ruin rather than looking at a picture:)
This year I will be taking three trips.
1. Next month Maui. airfare for four paid with miles points. No cost. Hotels for two weeks paid for with miles, no cost. my only cost for two weeks is food and rental car. Cheaper than camping in Almanor for me. I even scored discounts for half or more off on activities by buying tickets or vouchers off ebay or craigslist. yes there is a risk there but so far have not been burned. Estimated trip will cost us no more than 600 bucks for a family of 4:)
2. We won a trip on facebook with most of your help. But yes I enter a lot of contests. I dont watch much tv but do a lot of research on the computer. This is actually the 3rd trip/thingy we have won. 1st was hawaii condo, second was disney tickets in a raffle, and third was this current monster trip we won. Its by far the biggest. Yes this involves some luck:) But anyway we will probably go to either Princeville Kaui, Grand Cayman, Vieques puerto rico.(Check it out its amazing one of the few desolate Caribbean islands still with miles of empty beaches. The W resort was on the bachelor this year. Dont ask how I know this.) This trip will cost us NADA as we also will get spending money as part of our winnings. cool huh. start entering some vacation contests. People do win them.
3. Disneyland in November. My favorite week to go. Email me if you want the week its the best. No waiting in lines. Points from hotel used to pay for lodging. Tickets paid for by winning a raffle and using points from the Disney card. And about half our meals paid for in points built up from the disney card. A few times i have even scored leftover tickets on ebay. I am an insidear so if you want info on anything disney let me know. No I dont get paid for it. Its just fun. Probably spend about 800 on this trip as we are driving down there and we are suckers for disney dining and paraphernalia.
http://www.mousesavers.com/dlmeals.html is a great place to look for disney ways to save..
So for a year I am estimating to spend 1400 bucks on three trips. What do you do with your tax refund:) I will in some upcoming blogs give more info on my 3 year matrix and what credit cards I think are best for travel. (hint I hate cash back cards) Please take special note you should NOT go into debt for vacations or anyother thing on credit cards. Do not be tempted to. Its not worth it
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