Recreation
"He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside quiet waters; he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name's sake."
– Psalm 23:2-3
Amy and I just wrapped up our second week out in Jackson Hole, WY, and are headed back home to Birmingham. I am feeling renewed and refreshed from my time out west. It is amazing what can happen when we step away from our day-to-day routine and take some time and space to slow down. Over the past few weeks I have hiked mountain trails, fly fished crystal clear streams and lakes, biked through the mountain valley, golfed with the Snake River and Tetons as my backdrop, paraglided off the mountain, spent hours sitting under a shade tree in Teton Village with Amy working on a book, and had many quiet mornings on the back porch watching the Aspen trees flicker in the wind and sunlight as I practiced gratitude and thanked God for this amazing opportunity. Each of these experiences has done something restorative to my soul that the grind and pace of day-to-day life typically don't. I came out here running a little low, but I am leaving full.
As I have been reflecting on this week, I keep coming back to one word - recreation. Webster defines recreation as any fun activity done to relax and refresh your mind and body when you are not working. It includes hobbies, sports, and play. This is a great definition, but I believe that there is much more to recreation than what Webster outlines. The more I sit with it, the more I love what is hidden inside this word. Re. Creation. To be re-created. To have something new formed within us through the intentional act of stepping away from our work and engaging in activities that feed our souls and restore our energy. God does not just allow us to engage in this kind of renewal. He designed it, modeled it, and built it into the very fabric of how we are meant to live. And for driven leaders who tend to equate rest with laziness and busyness with faithfulness, that is a truth worth sitting with."Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light" Matthew 28-30.
Three Principles of Godly Recreation
Recreation Is God's Design for Renewal: From the very beginning, God wove the principle of rest and renewal into the rhythm of creation. He rested on the seventh day not because He was tired but because He was establishing a sacred pattern for us to follow. He knew that we would need regular seasons of stepping back, breathing deeply, and allowing Him to restore what life constantly depletes. He gave us this command for our enjoyment and good health. The Hebrew concept of Sabbath, Shabbat, literally means to cease and to rest. But woven alongside it is the concept of menuha, a deep soul tranquility and wholeness that comes not just from stopping work but from actively engaging in the things that restore us. Recreation in the biblical sense is not passive. It is purposeful engagement in the activities, relationships, and experiences that God uses to restore and refresh us at a deeper level of the soul. I have fished since I was a young boy, and there is something about standing in a cold mountain stream feeling God's presence through the awesomeness of His creation; in the moment focused on nothing but the water, the fly, and the rhythm of the cast that quiets everything inside me. That is not wasted time. That is God doing His restorative work through His creation. He is remarkably creative in how He meets us when we create space for Him to do so."In six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed" Exodus 31:17.
Recreation helps Restore What Leadership Depletes: Leadership can be costly. Every week we pour out our energy, creativity, wisdom, and emotional capacity into our teams, our clients, our families, and our ministries. And without intentional seasons of restoration, we slowly but surely start to run dry. We become less patient, less creative, less present, and less effective. We start leading from willpower rather than abundance, and everyone around us feels it. This is not a character or competence issue; it is a reality of how God designed us. God built us to need renewal, and the sooner we accept that truth and build restoration into the rhythm of our lives, the healthier and more fruitful our leadership will be. Isaiah promises that those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength, soar on wings like eagles, run and not grow weary. That kind of renewal does not happen when we are white-knuckling our way through a packed calendar. It happens when we slow down long enough to intentionally recreate so we can receive what God has for us in the unhurried places. I paraglided off the mountain this week and soared over the valley for twenty minutes with nothing but wind, sky, and silence. And somewhere up there I felt something shift in my soul. A fresh perspective. A renewed sense of gratitude and wonder. A reminder that God is infinitely bigger than my to-do list and my problems look a lot smaller from up there. That is what recreation does. It restores our perspective along with our energy."Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint" Isaiah 40:31.
Recreation Is an Act of Trust and Worship: Here is perhaps the most important reframe I want to offer the driven leaders in our Abide & Lead community. Taking time to recreate is not selfish, it isn't irresponsible, and it isn't something we earn after you finish everything on your list because that list never ends. Recreation is an act of faith and trusting God. It is communicating by action that I believe God can sustain what I am building while I step away to be restored. It's an act of worship and obedience that says the life You have given me is worth enjoying, not just surviving. Sitting on the back porch watching the Aspen leaves flutter as they catch the afternoon light in the cool breeze with nothing to accomplish and nowhere to be - that is a form of worship. A long hike along a mountain lake trail with a heart of gratitude and praise - that is a form of worship. Extended dinner conversations with friends around the table overlooking the Tetons - that is a form of worship. God is glorified when His children receive the gift of life with joy and gratitude and allow His creation to point them back to the Creator. Jesus Himself practiced this. He attended weddings and long dinners with friends. He sailed on lakes and even served as a fishing guide for Peter. He retreated away with his disciples to rest in quiet places. He understood that a life of sustainable fruitfulness requires seasons of genuine renewal. Jesus modeled this consistently throughout His 3 short years of ministry. "The Lord is my shepherd; I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters; He refreshes my soul" Psalm 23:1-2.
As we pack up to head home, I am genuinely grateful for this season of re-creation. I came out here a little depleted, and I am leaving renewed, refreshed, and full of fresh vision and energy for the fall, which is a very full season of ministry. That is not a coincidence; it is intentional. It is honoring the principle He built into His creation. When we intentionally step away to rest, play, and receive the gift of His world around us, He meets us there and makes us new again. I want to encourage every person, especially those in leadership, to stop waiting until you have earned a break and start treating recreation as the essential and holy discipline that it truly is."Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while"Mark 6:31.
Challenge Question: When did you last take intentional time to recreate, to engage in activities that genuinely restore your soul and renew your energy? What is one way you can build a rhythm of recreation into your life this summer and carry it forward into the fall? We should make recreation part of our weekly sabbath rhythm.
Prayer: Father, thank You for the gift of recreation and the restorative power of Your creation. Thank You for building rest and renewal into the very rhythm of life and for meeting us in the unhurried places when we slow down long enough to receive what You have for us. Forgive us for the times we have been too driven or too self-reliant to stop and be restored. Help us to receive the gift of recreation not as indulgence but as a holy and necessary act of trust and worship. Renew our strength, restore our souls, and send us back into the arena refreshed and full of fresh vision for all You have called us to. In Jesus' name, Amen.
God designed you for renewal, not just productivity. Step away, breathe deeply, and let Him re-create something fresh within you. This is one of the secrets to us living to our full God-given potential.
