“By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work.” Genesis 2:2
“But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” Isaiah 40:31
The word “rest” can carry with it feelings of anxiety or angst, but that is not how is was designed. The world has many things backwards including its view of rest. Life shouldn’t be about endlessly over-committing, competing and rushing to and fro. Life is about balance- hard work and discipline followed by times of rest and rejuvenation. The world tends to swing on a pendulum where one extreme view is no rest is best-always going — to the other extreme of excessive rest and no productivity-laziness — with the sensible view of rest somewhere in the middle. We all have a God-given responsibility to fall somewhere in the middle. We have been designed to work hard in our niches and rest when appropriate.
Rest is highly important. When we don’t take time to let our bodies, minds, and souls rest we are asking ourselves to run on fumes. To be the healthiest, happiest individuals that we can be, we must attending to all three — body, mind, and soul.
Some periods in our lives will offer more time for rest while other times demand us to create energy out of nothing, and in those chaotic times somehow by sheer willpower and God’s grace we are able to muster that needed energy to do the task at hand. We might feel absolutely drained and wonder how on earth we did it, but we know God’s supernatural touch is the only answer.
Resting might look different to each person. Resting doesn’t mean just lying around on a sofa binge watching the latest show or scrolling through our phones — this is actually more exhausting. Relaxing is about taking special time for ourselves to be alone, to clear our minds, to nourish our bodies, and to attune our hearts.
Resting might look like taking a walk or a run or a swim. Maybe visiting the gym is how we relax. Cannoning, mowing grass, reading, writing, painting, and cooking are all great ways to rejuvenate and connect with our creative side; after all we are designed to be creative. It is important for us to know ourselves well enough to recognize what makes us feel rested and when we need to rest.
Rest is a positive thing. God would not tell us to rest if it would waste the precious time that He has given to us. We tire, we get weary, worn out, and weak. God knows that only true rest will give us the jumpstart that we need to get excited and re-engaged in our lives’ mission. Even Jesus and His disciples needed to take time to quiet themselves and rest as they ministered and taught the multitudes. God Himself rested and found it useful.
When we truly rest we open up internal space to think more deeply. We can quiet some of the noise allowing our hearts and minds to focus on the more important things in life. Taking time to rest reveals our unique makeup. We all relax in a different way. De-stressing gives us the opportunity to see the unique gifts God has given to each of us. Resting our hearts through Bible study and prayer gives us specific time to listen to God and ponder the spiritual things. Doing things that make us happy actually makes us healthier which means our bodies work better.
True rest is not when our weary and exhausted heads hit the pillow, and we fretfully sleep five hours away waking up to be just as tired as when we laid down. True rest means investing in ourselves. We need to SLOW DOWN and feel and observe. Sitting on the porch for five minutes watching nature is a simple way to slow down just enough to catch our breath, to enjoy this lovely earth God has made, and to allow time to listen to the Lord.
The world sees rest as a negative, yet when we do not rest, we become stressed. We suffer physically, emotionally, and spiritually when we fail to rest. Resting doesn’t equal failure. Failure to rest equals hardships. When pressures have been weighing on us and we no rest in sight, we must call on the Lord to sustain us, and He will. We yearn for rest because we were designed to have periods of rest.
In chapter six of the book of Mark, Jesus and His disciples took off in a boat to find some peace and quiet. They had been working tirelessly to win converts in the name of Jesus. It was late in the evening, and these men had already prayed for children, healed the sick and afflicted, fed the hungry, cast out demons, and preached the truth. This was an exhausting time for these men. So, they sailed out to find a quiet place to rest, however the crowds saw their course and amassed on the banks where they were headed. Jesus, although He was surely exhausted, soldiered on for the cause of the Kingdom. Jesus, once on land, saw the crowd and saw the need. Jesus forgot His own weariness and need for rejuvenation and gave of Himself to preform one of the most well-known miracles recorded. Jesus and His disciples, much in need of true rest at the time, fed 5,000 men and numerous other women and children. This account shows that the need for rest is very real. This account also shows how perseverance despite exhaustion and weariness are possible.
God’s grace will sustain us when rest is not possible at the time. Sometimes our calling forces us to work longer and harder for the kingdom, but God will sustain us like He sustained Jesus and His disciples. Even if we feel stretched too far, weak, weary and worn, God can use to to minister to others. It is our duty to recognize our need for rest, as Jesus did, and find what makes us feel rested.
“The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught. Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, ‘Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.’So they went away by themselves in a boat to a solitary place. But many who saw them leaving recognized them and ran on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them. But many who saw them leaving recognized them and ran on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them. When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.By this time it was late in the day, so his disciples came to him. ‘This is a remote place,’ they said, ‘and it’s already very late. Send the people away so that they can go to the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.’But he answered, ‘You give them something to eat.’” Mark 6:30-37
“Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him.” Psalm 62:1
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Judith Cooley teaches Language Arts and Drama
Follow her Facebook page @pondervotional for more encouragement
