Lake Geneva

Holy cow!!! What a great "weekend" we had! Huge shout out to the Gleason clan...they stayed at the Furr zoo on Monday night so that Heidi and I could take off to Lake Geneva. What a great time! Thank you, Gleasons! And thank you, Furrbabies...you did great.

Lake Geneva is a great community about an hour from Lake Villa. It's got a great downtown area very near to the water - reminds me a lot of Grand Haven, where I grew up in Michigan.

Heidi and I enjoyed some great dinner, relaxed conversation, football, and ...sleep...great sleep...ahhh. There are amazing little conversations that happen when they can just pop up...different than the ones that take place during a two-hour date or between baths in the evening.

What an incredible woman I am married to. I would so do it all over again. I just love spending time with her - hearing her stories, listening to meandering thoughts, her spiritual insights...it's all incredible for me to just take in. You're a gift, Babe...

These past couple weeks have afforded me a little reset. I knew that I'd need it sometime before the fall ministry season, but wasn't sure what it would look like. God provided and it's been great for me. A little rest...but beyond that just some time to hit the reset button and clear my mind a bit.

God provides rest. There is so much work to do in this little thing we call life...80 years is all we have to make a difference and do our part in God's work in this world. After that, eternity awaits...then there is rest. But even with all the work to do here...we need seasons of rest...God made it that way. Weekly days for sabbath rest - to remember that God is bigger than us and to trust his provision, if even for one day. Monthly days to get away and pray for a longer period of time - to listen and allow for pop-up conversations with God. And annual vacations - to visit friends, sleep a bit more (unless you have kids), and see parts of the world you haven't seen ever or for a while. Different types of rest...all gifts from God.

Thanks, God...for the rest.

M@