If we took a holiday...

In 1983, Madonna's first song to hit the Billboard Top 100 was "Holiday." The song has an interesting history of how it landed with Madonna, but it became incredibly popular and helped skyrocket her career. The lyrics, written by Curtis Hudson and Lisa Stevens-Crowder, were simple:

If we took a holiday

Took some time to celebrate

Just one day out of life

It would be, it would be so nice

Everybody, spread the word

We're gonna have a celebration

All across the world

In every nation

It's time for the good times

Forget about the bad times, oh, yeah

One day to come together to release the pressure

We need a holiday

This song keeps coming back to me this summer, when history seems to be made with breaking news each passing hour. I recently had a chance to travel - and I found myself feeling somewhat guilty at that opportunity. Then I realized how much it helps to focus on what is right in front of us, milestones worth celebrating, gratitude, a change of pace, and that a short break from reality for rest and connection helps heal our souls.

Jesus and the disciples understood this as well. In Mark 6:31, they are circling up from the day's activities when we are told, "Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, 'Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.'” The story says next that they retreated to a solitary place.

I'd love to stop the story right there. Just give them a break for a minute. The draw of solitude and time with those you are close to - but the story moves quickly forward.

People who recognized them and needed something from them followed them. By the time they arrive at their destination, there is a large crowd. Jesus teaches them and then creates a way to feed over five thousand people. Impressive - but not very relaxing.

"Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it," quotes the wise Ferris Bueller (whose film comes out just a few years after Madonna's "Holiday," in 1986). It turns out all of us as humans experience those ebb and flows. If we took a holiday... we might find ourselves still met with life demands.

Even Jesus.

But keep reading. Mark 6:45-46 tells us, "Immediately Jesus made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. After leaving them, he went up on a mountainside to pray."

We all have work to do. Sometimes we get a chance to rest. And often times that rest is interrupted. And yet - we return to it. We take those opportunities for solitude. We need a holiday.

How will you experience the mindset of holiday over the next few weeks? Or dare I say, how will you experience a time of Sabbath, which our faith calls us to do?

May you slow down. May your interruptions be somehow be productive, generous, and joyful. And may your dedication to returning to solitude be a priority.