Rest. What seems like a simple concept, can be so difficult to obtain. Whether that is physical, emotional, spiritual, or mental rest, it is never really as easy as it seems to just to get some “R&R”. I believe that a lot of the time, we fail in our attempts to truly rest because we approach it at the wrong angle. How we approach anything in life requires a heart posture. Our approach to rest requires an examination of the heart- an honest and raw conversation we must have with ourselves and with the Lord.
Being completely transparent, rest has been quite difficult for me to obtain in the past. Now, I will preface with the fact that my life has been a lot busier than usual in the past 2-3 years, and I can attribute that to just the simple change in seasons. Life changes. We grow. We mature. With some seasons more fast paced than others, none looks like the last. It took me a long time to even come to terms with the last sentence. I would grow to become comfortable in an area of my life, and then, before I knew it, it was changing before my very eyes, and there was nothing I could do about it except embrace it and hold the Lord’s hand the entire time. I wanted to stay in control of the pace at which my life changed and the direction in which it took. Ha! I laugh as I write that because it is pretty comical in the sense of surrender. I wanted to stay in control, and then I would tell God, “I give you everything.” I’m sure God responded, “Well, which is it?” The point I am trying to make is that regardless of the change of seasons, one thing must be constant: our dependency on Jesus. However, I have also learned that regardless of the change of seasons, we cannot make the excuse of the busyness of life to draw us out of true rest. And that is exactly what I did. I would hear the common ideology that this modern society loves to sell: having a busy life and going non-stop automatically equates to winning at life and being the most productive version of yourself. I knew it was a lie, and I could prove that it was a lie, yet I still allowed it to become true in my life. I enjoyed the idea that if others viewed me as productive, I was productive. Oh, what a lie from the enemy. My first issue that the Lord was so gentle in uncovering to me and healing me was my constant need for the approval of man. I still walk with Him in that. I am not perfect, never will be. I do aim in daily surrender, though, and I know that dying to the flesh is a good start if you want to let the opinions of others roll off your back. My second issue was believing that I could function on a lie. The lie that if I stay busy, stay productive, and keep my head down, everything would fall into place. That in itself will burn you out, and quickly, too. Do I still believe that busyness is appropriate in due season? Yes. Do I believe the same for productivity and consistency? Yes. But I believe that those must come secondary to being rooted in a King that you can only find true rest in. Functioning out of your own strength is a one-way street to isolation and exhaustion. When we learn to lay both strengths and weaknesses at the feet of Jesus, it produces an oil of intimacy with Him. It is an offering. Our rest is an offering. Our rest is an act of faith, telling the Lord that regardless of what goes on in my life, I will find myself at Your feet every day, every season, until I go to be home with You, Jesus. Everything else functions and stems from rest. Rest is the foundation on which our relationship with Jesus sprouts from. Rest is where we get to meet Him in the secret place and get to know Him as the one our soul loves.
Learning to submit your plans to the Lord is the first step. Psalms 16, verse 3, instructs us to commit our plans to the Lord and our thoughts will be established. What a beautiful promise. Submission is not easy in a culture where we love to prove we can do things in our own strength. Submission enables humility to enter into the picture, and allows our spirit to relinquish the control that we love so much. As I said previously, rest is an act of faith. I love what the Lord says about faith. In Hebrews 11, verse 1-3 says, ” (1)Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. (2) For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. (3) By faith we understand that worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.” Read verse 1 again. It says faith is the evidence of things not seen. Faith is the act of blind trust. Faith is a trust fall with Jesus. So, piecing that together: if rest is an act of faith and faith is the act of blind trust, when we rest in Him it allows us to boldly trust Him with all that we are and everything we are connected to.
What does rest look like? Rest looks like a daily choice. Rest is an act of submission every day, no matter how big or how small, saying to the Lord, “I choose, first and foremost, to sit with you.” It may physically look like separating yourself from things your flesh is used to, such as visiting with family, scrolling on social media, watching television, participating in daily hobbies, etc. None of these things are necessarily harmful, but is the intentional act of pulling away from these things to be with the Lord that matters. There is a time and place for everything, but if rest does not preface our lives, then we set ourselves up for failure. Just as the physical act of sleeping is essential for our bodies to heal and recover, allowing our spirit to rest in Him, opens up our spirits to avenues of healing we are in need of. Jesus says in Matthew 11, verses 28 -30, “(28) Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (29) 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. (30) For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” I believe rest is the precious and holy moment we get to have with Jesus while we are still in our earthly bodies. It is the physical depiction of taking a deep breath and exhaling the anxiousness the world tries to place on our shoulders. But in the kindness of who Jesus is, He takes away our heavy burdens and gives us His rest in return. A rest that transcends human understanding. Learning to rest in the midst of life is not easy, but it is possible. Do not believe the enemy’s lie that you will never obtain true rest because of the consequences of your actions. Believe the truth of the word of God. He is your rest. He is your portion. Give yourself grace as you learn to function in rest and how to live from it instead of visiting it occasionally. Rest is the beginning of a beautiful journey you can choose to have with the Lord. Be blessed as you rest with Him this week.
