How is your summer going so far? Nurseries, schools, colleges, and universities are on their summer break, while workplaces and community groups may or may not be quieter.

For some, this season brings welcome freedom to spend time with family and friends, travel, enjoy hobbies, explore new places, or simply rest. For others, the loss of familiar routines can feel unsettling.

The pressure to make the most of our time — to balance work, rest, and play — can itself become exhausting. Yet healthy rhythms in the way we live our days, weeks, and years matter.

Rest is an important theme in the Bible. Genesis begins with stories that highlight Sabbath rest after creative, life-giving work, and the command to keep a day of rest became central to Jewish and Christian life. Jesus, too, regularly withdrew from the crowds to talk to God, reflect, and spend time with close friends.

In a culture that prizes constant productivity and instant responses, taking time to rest can feel like falling behind. Yet rest is not laziness, but a shared human need — one that God models and values.

After the ups and downs of recent years, my hope and prayer is that each of us finds space this summer for deep, life-giving rest.

By Rev. Dr. Joseph Mottram