Rest

Day 9

Click here to see all the posts in this 31 day series! Thank you! 

 I told God this past Sunday as I was looking at my calendar for the week that I would “rest” on Thursday. I’m pretty sure He laughed a bit when I said that.

By Tuesday my body and soul were asking for rest. “Not until Thursday, there’s too much to do,” I’d tell myself although I could feel God telling me rest needs to happen every single day. He is so compassionate that He knew we could not handle more than 24 hours in a day, and a chunk of those He intended for sleeping! I do not have much trouble with the sleeping part; it’s the resting during the day I have to be intentional in doing.

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-20 esv

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” Matthew 11:28-20 msg

“I will satisfy the weary,
    and all who are faint I will replenish.” Jeremiah 31:25

Need more convincing? Click here for 43 Verses on Rest

 If you are prone to anxiety or have symptoms of post-traumatic stress, I believe it’s vital to understand what resting in God looks like and how "rest" looks for you. Your resting in God may very well look very different than another person's rest in Him. God chose the word "rest" for me this year and, wow, is it apparent to me why that word was chosen for this year. Bonnie Gray’s book, Finding Spiritual Whitespace: Awakening Your Soul to Rest, has been an amazing resource for me. I encourage you to check it out if you, like myself, need permission to rest. We cannot be effective for God if we are not serving from a place of rest.

Are you weary? Are you determining your worth based on how much you cram into a day? Ask yourself what is God’s job and are you taking on more than He is asking? How can you obey God and make a move toward rest? 

Be still, and know that I am God. Psalm 46:10