How to Use Your Break Well

We’re creatures of habit. And God made us that way.

God Himself operates with predictability, and he created a world full of patterns—from the seasonal or weekly cycles, to the laws of nature, and the need for daily sleep.

So what happens when our patterns stop? What happens when routine is broken? For many of us, we’re in a brief period without our regular routine. The kids are out of school, we’re turning the calendar over to a new year, and the world actually slows for a few days.

Without intentionality, life without routine is often selfish and lazy, and we face new or greater temptations to sin.

I’d like to offer 5 encouragements for moments without routine.

1. Spend time resting

God made us to need rest. He builds our entire weekly structure around our rest with Him and even included the Sabbath command in the Ten Commandments (Ex 20:8–11).

Encouragements to rest run through the Bible. Even in the midst of busyness, for example, Jesus encouraged his followers to prioritize rest.

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. (Mark 6:31)

I fear our world has lost the ability to rest. Instead of resting, we turn to quick entertainment that often drains us more than refreshes us. Do you know what actually refreshes and restores you?

• A slow walk with time to think
• A long nap
• Reading a book
• Talking with a good friend
• A board game
• Exercise

Let me encourage you to avoid mindless rest that leaves you drained and prioritize true physical, mental, and spiritual rest.

2. Spend time serving

Jesus gave himself to serving. Mark 10:45 famously describes the Messiah’s life as coming “to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

The New Testament calls us to follow in his example.

• “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.” (Philippians 2:3–4)
• “For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.” (Galatians 5:13)

Resist the lie that because you “deserve a break”, you are to be served. Being a dad always looks like servanthood. And while our breaks should provide rest, seasons of rest should energize service.

Take time to thoughtfully ask how you can serve those in your life:

• Your wife
• Your children
• Your neighbors
• Your pastor

3. Spend time with God

God made us to know and enjoy him. He calls us to it.

“Be still, and know that I am God….” (Psalm 46:10)

You may feel busy and overwhelmed. And, yes, you need rest. But even in moments of extreme busyness, Jesus shows us that rest is found most importantly in spending time with God.

And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed. (Mark 1:35)

God wants you to delight in Him by delighting in his Word (Ps 1:2–3) and find in Him fullness of joy (Psalm 16:11).

Practically, let me encourage you to commit to daily prayer and Bible meditation during break seasons. Be ambitious and consider more time with the Lord if you have more discretionary time.

In the end, God made you for Himself and when you are free from regular routine, give yourself to Him.

4. Spend time fighting sin

Satan is a roaring lion (1 Peter 5:8) and he knows when routines are different, we are especially prone to temptations.

God declares that every temptation can be resisted with his enabling power (1 Cor 10:13) and commands us to “submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (Jas 4:7; cf. Mt 26:41).

When preparing to fight temptation:

1. Identify your suspected areas of temptation (e.g., selfishness, laziness, lust, etc.).
2. Make it hard to sin in those areas.
3. Ask for help ahead of time from your pastor or another friend.
4. Be quick to ask forgiveness if you fall.

I’m not encouraging a kind of morose introspection that makes your entire experience about whether or not you can resist a specific sin. I’m encouraging thoughtfulness.

The flesh, the world, and Satan do not take breaks, even if we do. So don’t take a break fighting sin. As John Owen famously wrote, “Be killing sin or sin will be killing you.”

5. Spend time enjoying life

Every good and perfect gift comes from God (Jas 1:17) and God wants us to enjoy his good gifts. Ecclesiastes is full of encouragement to “be joyful” and to “eat and drink and take pleasure in all [our] toil—this is God’s gift to man” (Eccl 3:12–13; 8:15, etc.).

One of the best ways to get rest, to serve others, to know God, and to fight sin, is to enjoy your family. Your children are a heritage from the Lord (Ps 127:3) and He wants you to enjoy them before Him.

We often mistakenly pit God’s gifts against him, where God wants us to enjoy them for and to Him. Perhaps an illustration will help.

When you gave your child a gift at Christmas, what did you want to experience? You wanted to see your children enjoy the gifts in front of you, for you, with you.

If your child said, “Dad, because I love you, I don’t want to play with the toy you got me,” you wouldn’t hear that as love but insanity. Conversely, if your child pushed you away and said, “Dad, get out of here. Can’t you see I’m trying to play with my toy!” you wouldn’t see that as love either.

God wants us to open our gifts and to enjoy them for him and to him. He wants us to enjoy our children and look heavenwards with gratitude, to whisper “thank you”, and to continue enjoying our children before His face.

Conclusion

May these encouragements refresh you and help you get the most out of this week.