This summer, as I was making plans to walk the Camino de Santiago with my daughter, I proudly shared my ambitious itinerary with a friend: six days, seventy miles, Compostela certificate in hand. She smiled and asked me a question I wasn’t prepared for: “When are you going to rest?”
That question has stayed with me. Like many leaders, I am prone to measure my life by outcomes and to forget that God’s way is different. Sabbath reminds us that rest is not laziness—it is resistance, delight, and trust. Without it, we lose not only our strength but our joy.
This fall (September–December), I will be taking a study leave to create space for reflection, reimagination, and realignment. It will be a season of listening to God, to our network, and to the wider church, discerning sustainable models that will deepen Missio Alliance’s mission in the years ahead.
I share this with you not simply as information but as invitation. Where might God be asking you the same question: When are you going to rest? May we become leaders who embody the rhythms of work and rest that make us whole.
With hope,
Lisa Rodriguez-Watson
National Director, Missio Alliance
