ALL ROUND REST

The Merriam Webster dictionary defines rest as :

  • To cease from action or motion: refrain from labour or exertion.
  • To be free from anxiety or disturbance.

    I know l am not alone when l say that l feel like l have to constantly be doing something. Anything really. And like many of us, being busy or “productive” has become a way of life.

    There is a particular call day that l will never forget in all my days as a resident doctor. It was a Monday and l was working the night shift meaning that l went to work at 7am till 2pm and was back at work at 8pm and due to leave work the next morning.

    I got to work just a little before 8pm and boy was it a busy night! I did not have any time to sleep or even sit down that entire night and before l knew it, it was 11am the next day and l was truly so exhausted.

     l remember my brain and body shutting down.

    I walked into the doctors call duty room and l simply broke down before packing my belongings and going home to sleep for 15 uninterrupted hours!

    It was quite a night and l will never ever forget it.

    The point of that story is to highlight the need for rest.

    The story points to a physical type of rest and this is an absolute need!

    But what if l told you that there is a type of rest you are offered as a child of God?

    We have an opportunity to receive rest that lasts.

    This type of rest comes from being yoked with Jesus.

    In Matthew 11:28-30 we see that Jesus is freely offering us God-defined rest. He says that we can give Him our burdens. This doesn’t mean that all our problems disappear but it means that we are aligned with God and the way we look at our problems change because God-defined rest automatically puts God in the driving seat!

    Remember the verse we were all made to memorise in primary school? Psalm 23:1-6?

    I took some time to reflect on King David’s poem and l see now how David understood the necessity of rest in God.

    As you prepare for the new week, l pray you find God-defined rest. I pray that you find All round rest and l pray that God makes you lie down in green pastures. I pray that He leads you beside still waters and that He restores your soul.

    Amen.

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