It is wonderful how going away and finding even just a moment of rest can bring so much refreshment and hope. This past week, the Cape Church pastors came together at Schoenstatt Constantia for our annual pastors’ convocation. Together with the disciples, we hopped into the boat of Mark 6:30 and went with Jesus to an isolated place to find rest.

We were richly fed by Professor Kas Wepener on Table Fellowship and dove into a deeper understanding of the role a pastor plays in the celebration of a service. We meditated on the different icons such as Christ Pantocrator, and Our Lady of Ravensbrück. Through the practice of visio Divina (explanation), we could rediscover God’s Word through the faces of the icons before us. This is an ancient form of Christian prayer in which we allow our hearts and imaginations to enter into a sacred image, such as an icon, in silence in order to see what God might have to say to us.

Together (with God) we ate, sang, sat in silence, questioned, rethought, conversed, planned, prayed, and pleaded. We were busy, yet we found rest.

The greatest take away from the convocation for me was the reminder that I have colleagues that sit with me in the same boat. But so much more than colleagues, they are my brothers and sisters in Christ, who seek to love, care and support each other. And for that one can only thank God!