We All Need Recess

As reported by the Associated Press (AP), the group “has always supported play – free play for kids – but it’s been increasingly threatened over time,” partly by the drive for higher test scores, said Dr. Robert Murray, a lead author. “It has a very powerful benefit if it’s used to the fullest.”

As the AP continued:

For example, new evidence shows that kids need pauses between concentrated bouts of learning so the brain can hold and store the information. Researchers also say recess gives kids a chance to navigate relationships and build confidence, which is just as important for older kids as younger ones.

Murray and his colleagues also stressed the importance of physical activity in preventing obesity, a condition that now affects about 1 in 5 U.S. children and teens.

Given these benefits, they recommend that recess be protected and never withheld for academic or punitive reasons, as sometimes happens in schools.

“If the child is disruptive or rude and disrespectful, recess is one of the things that teachers use to punish kids,” Murray said, adding that students struggling with behavioral issues or grades are often the ones who need recess most.

But those students aren’t the only ones losing out. Recess has been waning for all kids. Since the mid-2000s, up to 40% of school districts nationally have reduced or eliminated recess....

Agreed. But there was one line in the AP article that stood out to me from Dr. Lauren Fiechtner, a childhood obesity expert at Mass General Brigham for Children in Boston. She simply said, “Recess is great. We all kind of need recess.”

Yes, we do.

In the 46^th Psalm, we read, “Be still, and know that I am God!” (Psalm 46:10, NLT). The words “be still” mean to “let go,” to “cease,” to “be quiet.” The idea is to stop long enough to focus in on God and hear what it is He might be saying.

In the 23^rd Psalm, it says, “The Lord is my shepherd, I have what I need... he leads me beside quiet waters” (Psalm 23:1-2, CSB). This speaks to more than a peaceful pastoral scene. The idea is more functional than poetic. Have you ever tried drinking from a fast, rushing stream? The shepherd-author, David, knew the importance of leading sheep to the wells and springs where they could drink without being rushed. That’s what God wants to do with us as our Shepherd. He wants to lead us to where we can drink Him in slowly, carefully, thoughtfully.

Thomas Kelly noted that we are supposed to live life on two levels: the level of hurried activity and then the life of the interior world. But we don’t. We only inhabit the first of those two levels. The frantic race through life becomes the only plane of existence in which we operate, or from which we draw.

One of my favorite challenges about this comes from the colonial history of Africa. A traveler took a long journey, where he had recruited some local tribesmen to assist him in carrying his loads and arranged for payment for that service. The first day, they moved fast, and they traveled far—it was a great day, and they were way ahead of schedule. On the second day, the traveler got up, but the tribesmen refused to move.

They just sat and rested.

The traveler, who wanted to get on with his journey, asked them why they wouldn’t keep going. They told him that they had gone too fast on the first day and that they were now waiting for their souls to catch up with their bodies.

And that is what God would say to a lot of us.

This is so important that God made it one of His famed Ten Commandments. “Remember to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the LORD your God” (Exodus 20:8-10, NLT).

The word Sabbath doesn’t mean Sunday, or Saturday, or even a worship service—the word Sabbath literally means “to cease, to stop, to quit, to rest.” The key is to make the day “holy,” something different, set apart and unique; a day unlike anything else. Something that is not like other things, or in this case, that is not like other times. Which means during this time, don’t hurry. Don’t work. Don’t labor. Instead, let God flow into you in every possible way.

This is why people have gathered for worship and teaching and interaction with each other at least one day a week – and usually as part of their Sabbath – from day one. And it’s time for not just a spiritual shot in the arm, but also an emotional one. This is where people get the most confused about the Sabbath. It’s not just about the absence of work or hurry, but also the presence of that which fills you.

As one author described a true Sabbath:

... eat foods you love to eat, listen to music that moves your soul, play a sport that stretches and challenges you, read books that refresh your spirit, wear clothes that make you happy, surround yourself with beauty—and as you do these things, give thanks to God for his wonderful goodness.

That’s a Sabbath.

And we all need one. Dangerously close to every seven days.

So yes...

“We all kind of need recess.”

Sources

Laura Ungar, “Pediatrics group issues new guidance on recess for the first time in 13 years,” AP News, May 11, 2026, read online.

W. Phillip Keller, A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23.

Thomas Kelly, A Testament to Devotion.

Lettie Cowman, Springs in the Valley.

John Ortberg, The Life You’ve Always Wanted.

Photo Credit: ©GettyImages/Maskot 

James Emery White is the founding and senior pastor of Mecklenburg Community Church in Charlotte, NC, and a former professor of theology and culture at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, where he also served as their fourth president. His latest book, Hybrid Church: Rethinking the Church for a Post-Christian Digital Age, is now available on Amazon or from your favorite bookseller. To enjoy a free subscription to the Church & Culture blog, visit churchandculture.org where you can view past blogs in our archive, read the latest church and culture news from around the world, and listen to the Church & Culture Podcast. Follow Dr. White on X, Facebook, and Instagram at @JamesEmeryWhite.