Jesus Invites You to Rest

Dear Friends,

Jesus Invites You To Rest

Today's devotional first appeared in the Advent/Christmas 2018 'COME (Christians Overcoming ME) Together' Newsletter. I want to share it with you all here too as there are valuable truths for each one of us.

The word “REST” has been on my mind a great deal lately. Probably because at the time of writing this I really am not feeling at all well and need more rest than usual. But rest is something we all need, whether we’re in poor health or not.

For too long, society has encouraged us to be busy, keep doing more, keep adding to an already full diary, keep taking on more responsibilities. In the past, in many churches, particularly in the ones I grew up in, works and serving others was emphasized as being vitally important, as was attending all the church meetings, not just on a Sunday morning but during the week too. This was the way I used to live, and my relationship with God was put in second place, although I was unaware of this at the time.

Many of us have overlooked the importance, the value, the necessity of rest and have done so to the detriment of our own bodies. It’s often not until our bodies break and say “Enough! I just can’t take anymore!” that we come to a place where we realise how rest needs to be an integral part of our lifestyle.

Jesus said:

“Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 (NLT)

I’m drawn to that sentence, “and you will find rest for your souls.” My inner being cries out for that as I read it. I want rest, I need rest, not just for my body and mind, but for my soul too. We need physical rest, our bodies cannot function without sleep. But even more so do we need soul-rest. And this kind of soul-rest only comes from being connected to Jesus.

Jesus said to them, “Come away with me. Let us go alone to a quiet place and rest for a while.” Mark 6:31 (WE)

What a wonderful invitation Jesus gives to each one of us. Imagine him saying that to you now. What would your response be? Would you make excuses as to why you can’t, that now’s not a good time, that you’re too busy or would you gladly accept?

There are such love and compassion in Jesus’ words. Each one of us needs time alone with him, somewhere quiet, somewhere it’s just him and us, somewhere we can rest. It’s about just “being”. My soul finds rest as I realise I don’t need to pretend to be something I’m not with him; I can be exactly who I am. There’s no need to pretend I’m well when I’m not. I don’t need to do anything or even say anything. My soul finds rest in his presence, knowing I’m accepted, fully known by him, fully known with all my faults and failings, yet fully loved by him. I receive his peace as I rest in him, peace from my anxieties and concerns, free from the burdens which have been weighing me down. Knowing I can leave them all with him.

Do you ever feel guilty for resting? I know I can feel that way sometimes. We believe the lie that we should be busy all the time; that we need to have something to show for what we’ve been doing; that we need to prove our productivity. When we rest, we have nothing obvious to show for our time and so we can feel guilty.

However, I’ve learnt the hard way (and perhaps you have too) that rest needs to be an essential part of our day. We need to make time to rest, just as we need to make time for any other important activity on our list.

I believe that rest is also productive because it helps to renew my physical strength and my mental capacity so that I function so much better than I would have done if I had forced myself to keep going rather than taking the time to rest. Rest brings me back to Jesus, sitting in his presence and restores my sense of perspective which can get so skewed when I’m overworked.

Rest is good for our whole well-being: physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually and this is why rest is one of God’s commands for his people and why Jesus encourages us to rest.

As my Good Shepherd, Jesus “lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honour to his name.” Psalm 23:2-3 (NLT)

Jesus never makes us feel guilty about needing to rest. He gives us permission to stop and rest. We don’t need to seek anyone else’s permission or approval when it comes to resting, because Jesus has already given his. When we can remember this, it helps us to rest guilt-free.

To Think About:

As we get closer to Christmas, which is often a busier time of the year and can be a more stressful one too, how will you respond to Jesus’ invitation to rest? (It may mean letting other things go so that you can grab hold of his invitation.)

Then, as we head into 2019, how will you keep responding to his invitation? What would your day to day life look like if you were to accept his invitation on a regular basis?

Vicki

If you enjoyed reading this devotional blog, then you may like to know that my latest devotional book "Dear Friend...52 Weekly Devotions to Encourage, Challenge and Inspire" Volume 2 is now available to buy from Amazon. (Its content is material adapted from past blog posts.) The book's format is the same as my first one with the added extra of room for journalling after each devotion. To learn more, click on the link below:

Dear Friend... (Vol 2)