Finding Rest – 5

Presented by Julie Busteed

Sometimes it feels like I’m living for a break—for that time when I can finally get away, rest, and come back refreshed and energized. And there’s certainly a place for getting away and resting. But I’ve realized it can’t be my only plan. I need to learn how to be refreshed in the middle of everyday life, rather than always looking ahead to the next vacation or weekend. I don’t want to spend my life, as our culture sometimes puts it, “living for the weekend.”

God gave us a rhythm of rest. He set apart the seventh day as a day of rest because he knows you and I need it. We need weekly rest, not just vacation rest when we leave town. And yet, it can be surprisingly easy to ignore this rhythm.

I’ve been talking about how busyness and our tendency to say “yes” to everything can spill over into our rest. And sometimes our unwillingness to stop or our failure to trust God with what needs to get done can keep us from truly resting.

But I believe it is important and shouldn’t be ignored, especially since it is God’s Word. Putting this into practice will take some intentionality. It’s not simply about time management, although, in a way, it is. We have to actually make space for rest and protect that time. And that isn’t always easy.

Resting doesn’t have to be on Sunday. I realize that doesn’t work for everyone. What I do want to emphasize is the importance of intentionally setting aside 24 hours each week to rest. I think there’s also freedom in how we practically do this. Maybe, for you, your Sabbath begins around Thursday evening and continues through Friday evening. Maybe you mark that time as different by not running errands. Perhaps you make a special meal you enjoy, take a long walk, spend time with a friend, or do something you wouldn’t normally make time for during the week.

And, of course, it should include time with God. Time to simply rest and be with him rather than always doing. Read his Word, but don’t rush through it. Meditate on what you’re reading. Read a good book. Take your time. Don’t let yourself be ruled by the clock.

I encourage you to prayerfully ask God how you can build regular Sabbath rest into your life the way he intentionally designed it for us. God designed us to work from a place of rest, not to work so hard that we find ourselves exhausted and needing rest.

Walking worthy of Christ sometimes means knowing when to stop, be still, and simply rest with him.