Time to Loosen Your Bow

As P.Bryan concluded the last of the 3-part series on "Work & Play" for the YAS service, he highlighted the importance of rest. He gave a personal testimony of having worked continuously without taking a break. He pushed himself beyond his physical limitations during his early ministry, preaching, cell visitations and counselling many others, thinking that doing all that will make him more 'holy' or to earn more 'credit' so to speak. Often, he wouldn't rest till the wee hours of the morning, spending his time reading and preparing for the next day's work. In 2003, he suffered a burnt-out. He came down with a severe eye infection. Both of his eyes were very red one day and he went to see a GP who gave him antiboitics eye drops to treat his conjunctivitis. The eye drops didn't work and his eyes were ozzing pus. He was telling the congregation how he had to constantly wipe the yellowish pus while he was watching television. His eyes grew very sensitive and he was afraid of bright light including going out into the sun as he would be blinded by the rays. A few weeks later, P.Bryan had an appt with an eye specialist. The doc commented that he was lucky to have made it to see him in time, if not, his sight could be permanently damaged. By the time he consulted this specialist, his eye corneas were already scarred. A membrane was formed over the surface of his eyes and that was why the antibotics eye drops couldn't reach the designated treatment area. The doc had to 'scrapped' (quoted P.Bryan) the layer of membrane off the surface of his eyes, using a highly specialised equipment. From that incident, the Lord spoke to him that he should not take rest for granted. So should we not, my friends, underestimate the impotance of rest.
A story P.Bryan then told us to further illustrate his point. According to tradition, when the apostle John was overseer in Ephesus, his hobby was raising pigeons. It is said that on one occasion another elder passed his house as he returned from hunting and saw John playing with one of his birds. The man gently chided him for spending his time so frivolously.
John looked at the hunter's bow and remarked that the string was loose. "Yes," said the elder, "I always loosen the string of my bow when it's not in use. If it stayed tight, it would lose its resilience and fail me in the hunt."
John responded, “If you keep a bow always bent, it will break eventually; but if you let it go slack, it will be more fit for use when you want it.” He explained, "In the same way as you do, I am now relaxing the bow of my mind so that I may be better able to shoot the arrows of divine truth."
We cannot do our best work with nerves taut or frayed from constant pressure. When Jesus' disciples returned from a strenuous preaching mission, their Master recognized their need for rest and invited them to come with Him to a quiet place where they could be refreshed
(Mark 6:31). Even Jesus prescribed time off for His wearied disciples after they had returned from a prolonged period of ministry. And in the Old Testament, God set a pattern for us when He “rested from all His work” (Gen.2:3).
Hobbies, vacations, and wholesome recreation are vital to a well-balanced, godly life. A rubber band when stretched once in a while will maintain its elasticity. But stretched to its max without letting go will cause it to snap. We lose our effectiveness by keeping our lives so tightly strung that we are always tense. Take time to smell the roses. Shouldn’t we take His example seriously? If it seems we can't relax, Jesus may be inviting us to take a break—to "come aside . . . and rest a while." Start by setting aside a special time to relax physically and renew yourself emotionally and spiritually. You will be at your best for the Lord if you have taken time to loosen the bow.

Footnotes:
P.Bryan has since taken up jogging at MacRitchie, learning to roller-blade
and recently began growing 'plants' in pots as his pasttime hobbies.
He thanks well-wishes for their prayers.