If I were Jesus’ therapist, there is one moment in particular that I’d love to process with him. In Mark 1:16, Jesus has just returned from the desert, announced his mission, and officially begun his ministry. He’s clear on his call, clear on his purpose, clear on his path, and yet in verse 16, we find Jesus wandering alone by the Sea of Galilee. We will later learn that he finds two new disciples and that he ministers to crowds of people, but at that moment, he’s just a man walking by the sea alone. I would love to process that moment with Jesus.
I grew up on the eastern shore of Maryland. We lived within an hour of the Atlantic Ocean, and we would spend most weekends at the beach. I can remember walking along the shore as a kid. Sometimes we were looking for colorful shells to give to our mothers, sometimes we were just dodging waves or racing each other. As an adult, that walk is different. Today, when I visit the beach, I find myself contemplating a task, remembering my youth, worshiping, and sometimes even worrying about the future.
I’d love to process with Jesus what emotions, energies, memories, and thoughts he was feeling as he walked along the sea that day. I would love to unpack with him what the weight of the world on his shoulders felt like in that moment. I’d love to think through what tools of emotional regulation he’d had access to growing up with Mary and Joseph and how those tools mirrored or countered what he’d learned by studying the scriptures and engaging his own divinity. I would love to listen as Jesus worked to articulate his relationships with his mother, with Joseph, and with God, and how each of those entities had a stake in this moment as he launched his earthly ministry. Can you imagine what Jesus was thinking as he took that walk along the shore?
Here is what I do know. There were many times in Jesus’ ministry as recorded in the gospels when he took similar walks, sat alone at a well, spent time in prayer in the garden, or just rested in the homes of friends. Jesus found ways to care for himself. He found moments to process, to exhale, to let go of the weight of his responsibilities and the expectations of the world. Jesus found moments to just be Jesus.
Now when I visit the beach, as a father and husband, I’m on duty. I’ve got folding chairs, umbrellas, bags, coolers, sunblock, and excited, energetic young kids to care for. And while all of that is great and sometimes fun, it’s also still critical that, like Jesus, I find time to just walk alone and process, if only for a moment. If Jesus can model for us what it looks like to simply be, then it is important that we also find moments for ourselves to just be.
Rev. Dr. Ron Bell currently serves as Director of Healing and Resilience at The Upper Room and will soon serve as Senior Pastor at Asbury United Methodist Church in Washington, D.C.
This reflection appeared in the June edition of The Upper Room Journal, a monthly newsletter to support you in creating daily life with God. Subscribe here.
When do you most feel the need to simply “be”?
What does your version of a “walk by the sea” look like?
How might you create small spaces to pause in your week?
If you had a moment with Jesus in solitude, what would you ask?
Share your responses with others in the comments below!
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