A 1961 hit song and musical were titled Stop the World—I Want to Get Off. Do you ever feel like that? By the requirements of Western culture, we live in a world of 24/7 connectivity. It demands constant success. There is often too little time for leisure, play, prayer or contemplation in our lives.

Young people today often share these frustrations: "I never have enough time for me!" "How can I relax, I have too much to do!" "I should be accomplishing something. I feel guilty when I relax." Increasingly many resort to alcohol and drugs to escape the pressure. To make matters worse, God—if He's thought of at all—is reduced to barely fitting into one's schedule.

No matter how "well meaning" our purpose in life, if we press forward with our work to continually accomplish without proper balance, we become enslaved. William McNamara, author of The Human Adventure, put it this way: "Possibly the greatest malaise in our country today is our neurotic compulsion to work."

Study, work, employment, tasks and "to do" lists are by themselves not wrong. In fact, working is a good thing—vital even. However, if we place too many demands on ourselves—or if we allow others do so—then we can lose touch with one of the greatest gifts God gives to mankind: rest and relaxation.

Our world needs a different philosophy of work. Work alone does not provide the identity or value we must each gain from understanding who we are in relationship to our Creator. It's important that we make time for proper rest.

Work misconceptions and the need for balance

Here are some wrong ideas about work that are now commonplace:

· Since work is good, the more work you do the better person you are.
· Work's purpose is to make enough money to buy things that make you happy.
· Those who don't work all the time are problematic and lazy.
· Your work identifies who you are.
· The Bible tells us that work is the most important thing we can do.

Even well-meaning Christians can rationalize their compulsive work habits by feeling that they're working for God—so they must always be "doing something." Society places far too much value on net worth, financial security and careers.

For decades, I operated my own company. There were always deadlines, projects, people to talk to and calls to return. One day it occurred to me that my life was running me instead of the other way around.

Our Creator knows the tendencies of human beings. He knows that with all of life's demands, a great many people would, if it were up to them, work all their waking hours—never taking time to rest or relax. Consequently, as Jesus said, "The Sabbath was made for man …" (Mark 2:27). God created the Sabbath—His day of rest—to keep man balanced and in contact with Him.

A godly, balanced life requires both work and rest—time for labor and time for rejuvenation.

Sadly, our modern media has done much to shatter the truth about true leisure. Its definition is basically, "You must buy something or go somewhere to be happy." That's a wrong concept altogether.

By rest, I don't mean a spending trip—though enjoying the fruit of one's labor can be part of proper rest. Nor do I mean sleep or just doing nothing. Rather, I'm talking about living a deeper, fuller, complete life.

How to relax—guilt free

In his book The Adventure of Living, physician and author on pastoral counseling Paul Tournier stated, "Many people spend their entire lives indefinitely preparing to live." Here are some practical things to do to actually live more contentedly right now.

Don't avoid today—live it! Constantly wanting to live in the future, seeking things you don't yet have or pushing harder to achieve those things unsettles the soul. Enjoy each day because "this is the day the Lord has made" (Psalm 118:24)—enjoy it and live!

Slow down! Take time out to enjoy the aroma of the world around you. Look at the creation. Listen for sounds you often miss. Get out of the fast lane of life; sit on a park bench and take in the rays.

Once in Central America I sat on a plastic chair in an alley outside a home, let the sun shine on my face and body and then watched the birds as they scampered to and fro on the ground picking up treasures. That day I will never forget.

Be thankful! Gratitude is an essential key to peace and calm in our lives. One of the greatest principles of relaxation and leisure is that of being consistently grateful. God inspired the apostle Paul to write, "In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you" (1 Thessalonians 5:18, emphasis added).

In my travels I spend time with a lot of happy, joyous people, who have very little and yet are so thankful to have what they have. I've relaxed with them and been refreshed by simply sitting and listening for hours about the good things God has blessed them with.

Don't take yourself so seriously. Many in this life spend half their time developing a reputation and the other half protecting it. In our society we're taught early that to be a success we must work hard and continually prove ourselves to everyone around us.

However, Jesus Christ reminded His students to be childlike. Children take time to laugh and don't take themselves too seriously.

Once while dining out with friends, the waiter asked us, "How can you be having this much fun, laughing, when no alcohol has been served at your table?" Lesson: You don't need drugs or alcohol to enjoy life and laugh happily with friends.

Dismiss the guilt. If you find yourself feeling guilty when you try to relax, rest, muse, ponder or enjoy life around you, stop thinking that way. Realize there's no reason to feel guilty about this.

Genuine guilt arises from doing something wrong. Relaxation, leisure and reconnecting with God and life around us are not wrong and are no cause for guilt—assuming, of course, that we are rightly devoting time and energies to the responsibilities we've committed to (that important balance again).

Consider how King David in the Bible wrote often of musing, pondering and meditating about God and his relationship with Him: "I will also meditate on all Your work, and talk of Your deeds" (Psalm 77:12). David expressed no guilt or stress for that "down time," as some would call it. He also understood that God's weekly Sabbath was a whole day of that kind of rest for the body and spirit.

Think also about the episode of Mary and Martha in the New Testament—where taking the opportunity to sit and hear the words of Christ are shown to be more vital than keeping busy with physical service (Luke 10:38-41). While such service is needed to a degree, we must keep it in perspective.

We all need to do our work, take time to relax and stay balanced in doing so—thinking vertically about our personal relationship with God. Turn to Him, and He will help you "stop the world," enabling you to capture the balance of work and play—and to enjoy life to its full.