Redeeming Our Vacations

Whether you’re heading out to the beach for a week, planning a big trip abroad, or simply driving down to Grandma’s for the weekend, family vacations mean making memories. The more prepared we are for using our vacations to delight in the Lord, the more likely those memories will be exciting, life-shaping, God-glorifying memories.

While your big goals for the week may be to splurge on the sugar-filled cereal and not worry about it, or to limit your naps to less than 2 hours, or to keep up a steady rotation of pool and ocean, I would encourage you to make some other goals as well. A daily three-hour in-depth study of the book of Ezekiel for you and the kids is not what I have in mind, either. I think that it is completely appropriate to break from some of the established routines and disciplines, just as long as it’s not that the expense of family spirituality.

Instead, use vacation as a time to establish new traditions. It is still possible to be relaxed, laid back, casual and spiritual at the same time. Simply being intentional to talk about vacation as a gift from God and opportunity to delight in what He’s given us can be a great place to start. I’m not proposing a nightly Bible trivia tournament (although that does sound kind of fun). I’m simply suggesting that the foundation of your vacation be Jesus Christ. That means Christ is the source of your joy in your new surroundings, in your interactions with your children and in your break from the daily grind. And if we are intentional to make Jesus the foundation of our vacations, how much easier will be to walk in the Spirit when lines at Disneyworld are long, or sunburns keep us awake at night, or siblings fight in the backseat when four hours of drive time remain?

My prayer is that your vacations would be a sweet time of worship and delight as you teach your children how to enjoy the Lord and the gifts He gives.

Some Ideas:

• Scrapbook photos from your vacation, and add Scripture to the captions that proclaim the glory of God in creation and relationships.Take along a favorite children’s Bible and have a skit night where you act out some of the stories you’ve been reading. Put on a show for other family members.
• Visit another church while you’re on vacation. Use the Internet or ask people around town.
• Communicate that taking a vacation does not mean we take a break from corporate worship. And why not invite the family staying in the hotel room next door to join you?
• Create a vacation scavenger hunt. Children can find examples of things to praise God for and pray for while on vacation.