How to find rest in scripture

Did you know rest was made for you?

I think rest can have different meanings for different people. Some of us embrace it, look forward to it and take full advantage of it. On the flip side, I think the majority of us think it is intended for someone else. You may think rest just equals lazy.

Whatever you believe, or practice, I have some exciting news. Rest was created for you.

I was absolutely blessed last week to be given the opportunity to attend the women’s retreat held by my church. The theme was rest, an activity (or lack thereof) that most of us do not do well. And it was absolutely perfect. As some of you know, I have been in a season of un-rest and frankly a lot of stress with our anticipated move. The weekend retreat was just what I needed, and God put me in the perfect place, at the perfect time.

Our speaker, Sue Heimer, president/founder of Leaving Your Legacy Ministries, presented us with the concept of biblical rest. And I am so excited to share some of my main takeaways with you.

I pray that you will find rest in this, as I have:

Genesis 2:3 – even God rested (and he didn’t need to).

God modeled rest for us! He wanted us to know how important it truly is that He included it in Creation. But why do we ignore it??

Rest is the most ignored spiritual gift we’ve been given. Humans have such an issue with rest (as do I, don’t you?!) and we have a hard time accepting it. So, God gives us the gift of rest again. In fact, He commands it (Exodus 23:12).

The Sabbath is for me. We need to trust God and accept our rest. Start by having an honest conversation with God. Be authentic, pour out your heart to Him. Talk to Him often! And always ask for help, peace and strength. God wants us to rest in Him.

Rest is not a luxury. Rest is a must.

It takes time to find our rest. It is nobody’s responsibility for me to find rest but me. 

When we ignore rest, we are in danger of burn out. And, it doesn’t just affect us – it affects everyone around us. Burn out will creep into our relationships. Think of it like this: if Satan can’t destroy my family, he will distract us. Busyness is a big distraction!

We are built for rest. Trust God that He’ll provide creative ideas to provide rest.

Psalms 37:7 – God is at work in the wait! Wait & rest.

God commands rest because he speaks to us in the rest. How beautiful that we can have a relationship directly with Him, all we need to do is be still! But, it is so easy for us to get stuck in our own mental chatter. This doesn’t allow God to speak to us. We need to focus on rest, and we need to focus on God.

Jesus reintroduces rest to us in the New Testament.

Jesus wants us to know, if we don’t take some intentional time for rest we will fall apart.

He cares for our needs. Are you ready to let him? We must lay every concern at his feet. We need be open to the Holy Spirit’s teaching. If we rest, we will receive. He will meet us right where we are at!

How beautiful is that?? After the weekend retreat, I have finally found peace with our move. Sure, there are hard days. But I try to remain still, pray and talk to God. And things are going much smoother. Which is a win for my family and their benefit (remember, burn out affects everyone around us!).

Everything about the retreat was amazing – Sue, our breakout sessions, and the much-needed girl time. I’ve gotta tell you though, I was abundantly blessed because someone sponsored my attendance. I pushed back at first, as I thought that should be reserved for someone “truly in need.” But, I was that person, and God placed it on this sweet friend’s heart to bless me. And I have been on both sides of this, as Mi Amor and I were able to sponsor a kiddo for church camp a few years ago.

So, keep this in mind: if you are being offered a blessing, put your pride or privacy aside and accept it. I promise it will fill your soul more than you could ever imagine. And, if you have the means, please consider blessing someone. Such a small act to some can bring an abundance of joy to both of you.