Bring Recess Back!

Think back to your grade school days. Remember when we used to have recess? It was a scheduled part of each and every day. It was that special time every child would look forward to where they could take a break from the schoolwork they were required to do and just play. Whether you were that child that immediately ran out and jumped on the monkey bars, the one that used your entire recess to talk to your friends, or the child that looked forward to those few minutes every day where you could just get off to a quiet corner by yourself, it was still a very cherished time of the day.

As we progressed through our schooling, at some point recess was no longer a scheduled part of the day. In some schools, even your lunch break wasn’t a break as you had stern-faced teachers standing over you demanding you to stay quiet, eat your lunch, clean the table, and head straight back to class. Is this why we as adults no longer take recess? Is it because we were taught at some point in our maturation process that recess is for babies? Do we just sit at our desks and inhale our lunch while we continue working because that’s what big boys and big girls do? I believe this is part of the reason why so many of us are so exhausted. We don’t know how to slow down. We don’t know how to take a break. We have completely eliminated recess from our schedules.

Well, today, I’m here to invite you to join me in bringing recess back! Even if it’s just fifteen minutes each day, we need to begin to schedule time into our days just to stop and unwind. I’m not talking about slowing down long enough to plan out your day, to pay an overdue bill, or to run a quick errand. And no, for those of you who like to try to spiritualize everything, I’m not even talking about time in the Word or in prayer. I’m talking about recess! A break. Something fun. Not a responsibility or an obligation or something productive or necessary – just old-fashioned recess.

It probably has been so long since most of us have taken recess that this may be extremely difficult for us to even fathom. If your mind has completely gone blank as you’re reading this, then how about starting by thinking back to your grade school days and trying to remember what you did during recess back then. If you were the child that played ball the entire time, why not go outside and toss the ball around for ten minutes in the middle of the day? If you just wanted to chit chat with your friends the entire time, why not schedule a fifteen minute phone call with your friend each day? If you just need some time alone, why not find a quiet place to take a fifteen minute power nap or read one chapter in a book you’ve been wanting to get to?

If you feel like you’re stuck in a vicious cycle of monotonous days where everyday is get up, go to work, come home, and go to bed; I dare you to start taking recess. Invite some of your friends to come out and play. Challenge someone to a random card game in the break room. Just start laughing for no apparent reason. Wear mixed-matched socks on purpose. Who said adults can’t have fun? So, come on! Join me! Let’s bring recess back!

Questions to Ask

·      What do you enjoy doing for fun?

·      How often do you make time to stop and play?

·      How will you begin to schedule recess into your day?

Scriptures to Study

·      Zechariah 8:5-6

·      Proverbs 17:22

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