Oregon Love.

4 days + 1 yurt and one of the most beautiful places on the West Coast = a Fantastic reading week!! Last Monday we packed up a jeep and headed seven hours down the West Coast with some good friends. We wanted to get away to somewhere beautiful and keep it cheap, hence the Yurt. These things were awesome. To describe it simply its a cross between a tent and a cabin; wood frame, canvas walls and heat and electricity inside. We spent our days hiking 200 ft. cliffs over looking the ocean, sitting by campfires (while fighting off the occasional raccoon), and visiting some vintage antique shops in town. And of course, such a trip brings with it all the joys of camping; wet socks, muddy shoes, camping carbs (PB and J, Macaroni and cheese, potato chips, pasta, etc.). The Weather was a super windy some days, which meant HUGE waves, but other than that it was a little cooler and louder at night.

 The Yurts!

 mr. and mrs.

A couple insights during the trip; I (mrs. hartin) was so reminded of the value and importance of REST. It's a beautiful thing that God has Created us to value and prioritize. From the very begining of creation, God established a Sabbath, when he rested. Was God tired out from creating? Was he weary and exhausted? I doubt it; He is the ALMIGHTY. And He obviously saw the importance of establishing such a discipline, that He desired man (made in His image) to imitate. Too much unneccessary clutter, business (even if we're busy doing 'good' things) makes it hard for us to live the way Jesus calls us to. Don't get me wrong; We need to work hard, being focused and doing things with excellence, and sometimes life is just busy, and that's okay. It's not okay when it hinders us from being a loving wife, husband, friend. It's not okay when we're too busy to be still enough to spend time with the Father, listening, loving, seeing. It's not okay when all our efforts and striving replace an atitude of Trust and Faith. During that time, things became a little hazy, and I was a slave to my schedule; wake up, read, class, homework, ministry, work, church - repeat. I was tired, burnt out and at the end of it all, I wasn't in a place (mind, body, or heart) to love/serve/be close with the ones closest to me and give them my best. Rest is different from laziness and the two ought not to be confused with one another. Of course, life is busy, and thats not a bad thing. It becomes a negative thing when it is not balanced with moments of rest and renewal.
Lesson: REST needs to be a value in my life, along with working hard, and doing what I need to do. Without rest, life can loose meaning; we forget why we're doing what we're doing, and life becomes something to get through. We miss relationship. We miss seeing God in people and places. And really, Is all the clutter and crazy-business necessary? Some of it is. But some of it isn't. Something to think about.

Simply put - beautiful couple days, seeing the handi-work of a beautiful God.

(more pictures to come!)

love mr. and mrs. hartin