On the flip side of all that productivity talk I shared yesterday is the need for recovery.  My rope gets tied in knots so to speak and my ends get burnt and frayed. There’s all kinds of stuff we can talk about for physical recovery but this time I’m talking about your innards, your heart, your soul, your phycy – that thing that makes you be you that gets totally worn out and crabby. My Honey and I have found that we need time to chill. It prevents the total crash and burn if we do it soon enough and it provides needed repair when we go too hard for too long.  How do we chill and get the real benefit for genuine recovery? We do it by making time to connect with friends, by just having talk time with each other and most importantly by being totally honest when talking to God.

Time with Friends – Recovery comes in part by spending time with people like Robert and Ruth. Those people in your life that are genuine listeners and have qualities that you want. We learn from how they treat each other. We listen to their stories of struggle and blessings. It makes us better people when we give an ear to listen and apply what we learn.

Time Alone Together – Recharging includes carving out time when we aren’t pushing for a goal or destination. When we can just talk about what is on our minds and hearts. Sitting quietly and watching a sun set or listening to the laughing water in a stoney creek. We just let it roll – no agenda – just getting real and remembering why we fell in love with each other.

Time Alone with God – Rest is the best word I can think of to describe what journalling with God feels like. That almost sounded girly…but it’s true – I have learned to journal and love it. The girls probably know what journaling is but I may need to explain it to the guys. You get a book full of blank paper that no one reads but you and you write down your thoughts, your prayers to God, what you believe He is saying to you or about you. You stick this book in your backpack to pull out in all kinds of ruggedly beautiful places. I have discovered as I relax and just go for it, that He – God – gives me insight on what to do or how to handle a situation. So, often, we sit and listen and write.

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This place in these pictures that our friends share with us feels like the edge of the world. You go from highway to one lane blacktop to gravel to dirt…and then…it’s were the dirt road ends. Not only is it a place of hard work but it is a place of laughter and quiet hikes spent sharing what God is doing in our lives. It is a place where no one has to perform to feel loved. Even a Sherman Tank has delicate equipment on the inside that needs to be cared for carefully.

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What have you done to recharge your batteries? When can you carve out some time today to work on a relationship with a friend, your Honey and God?