To Rest
Almost every day, I marvel at how strange time has seemed to pass for the last year and a half (almost). Just recently, I was talking with a few coworkers and we all agreed that, though September is so near, it still feels like May. Time is pushing and pulling in every direction, events and deadlines are sneaking up and big decisions suddenly have to be made in what feels like a split second. As our world is slowly returning to normalcy, the pace of our lives is rapidly increasing. It is in this moment that we have to ground ourselves in the truth that we don’t need to be striving to meet the standards of the world, we have to find peace in rest through Him.
The thought almost seems radical to me: to rest. I have always felt the pressure to strive, push myself, fit a mold. I would absolutely call myself a teacher’s pet, constantly endeavoring to please those depending on me, especially my superiors, under the ideology that I’m not useful or worth keeping around if I’m not excelling. I know I’m not alone in this. It is so easy to find ourselves bending over backwards and putting up with unacceptable treatment to hold a job, get a promotion, or survive in a world that deems us disposable. It is easy to forget that we weren’t made to strive. We weren’t made to serve our boss/manager/etc. We were made to serve the King of Kings and He wants our good.
Hebrews 13:5-6 says, “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’ So we say with confidence, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?’” God seeks to help us with no repayment but our truest love. He seeks our joy. We are His precious children. Our value cannot be determined by men. He has already deemed us priceless, perfect in His eyes even in our imperfection. We cannot serve both Him and the world, so how do we reconcile the two?
Rest. It can be so easy to equate rest to sloth. Rest is not sloth. Rest is holy. It is necessary. It helps us refill our cups with goodness to share with others. God straight up built the Sabbath for rest. Rest is a form of worship and cannot be passed off as though it isn’t. “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns.” Exodus 20:8-10.
During this last Lent, my devotional challenged me to keep the Sabbath holy. As I began more and more to prioritize the Sabbath, my relationship with Christ grew. Rest, however, isn’t just reserved for the Sabbath, we need rest every day. Not sleep, rest. I mean, yeah, we need to sleep but rest is active. It can be unplugging and reading a book, taking a walk, making yourself a comfort meal, or getting into the Word. Whatever you have to do to unwind and declutter your mind. The challenge is allowing yourself to take the time. You may not think you have the time but I promise that you do. Even five minutes. Think of your morning commute, your time in the shower, your bedtime routine. At the minimum, you have those minutes.
No practice is perfect right from the get go. It’s hard to retrain your brain and carve out time when you feel that there isn’t any to give. Start every day by giving yourself five minutes. Set a timer. Say a short prayer for whatever is on your heart. Give Him the glory and lay your worries at His feet. Over time, you’ll start to feel that there are other ways you can rest. Rest will become a part of your life.
I cannot say I’m great at this. 20 days out from the wedding, I feel fully ruled by stress and anxiety. Today at mass, God called me out. I know I’ve been striving. I know I haven’t been living for Him. He reminded me of all of this, warming my heart to know I need to rest. I can’t fully do His work without it.
Friends, find small ways to rest this week. Allow yourself to be healed by Him. Do not feel the need to strive, He loves you exactly where you are. The world may be loud and you may feel exactly like I do right now, but I assure you that He wants you to take care of yourself. He is cheering for you and I am, too. Take your rest, friend. Protect your peace.
