Category: Spirituality

We down play the importance of rest, especially in the fast pace and busy worlds that we’ve built for ourselves.

We work hard. We fill up our schedules. And we fill up the empty slots on our calendars with more activities just to make sure we have stuff to do.

We don’t take time to rest and to be still.

The Mental Health of America, in outlining ways to take care of yourself, lists a variety of habits we can develop to ensure proper care of our overall wellbeing. Rest, among other important routines, is a crucial step toward recovery. Being still does more for our soul and physicality than we realize. And it’s busyness toward the sense of completion that actually destroys who we are.

I’ve had the great joy of resting throughout the entire month of August. I finished up my projects at the nonprofit I worked for and I dove into a mini-sabbatical at the church that I pastor.

This past month has been extremely refreshing and good for my overall wellbeing. I’ve slept in more than I’m used to. I’ve been on more bike rides. And I’ve spent a lot more time with my family. In addition, I’ve spent a lot of time writing, as well as, journaling my journey through the Scriptures. Needless to say, I’ve also spent a lot more time in prayer and listening for God’s directions.

Rest and being still are extremely important. If you’re not resting, I highly recommend that you find time in your busy schedule to simply be still. It’ll feel weird at first, but once you get past the awkwardness of doing nothing, your inner person will thank you tremendously.

The challenge, moving forward, is developing the rhythm of rest. But, no matter how hard it is, rest and being still are rhythms we should fight for.

One of the hardest lines to walk—as a believer, as a follower of Jesus, as a child of God—is the path of obedience. We are at constant war with what God desires for our lives and what we feel is best for us.

The Bible says, in Galatians 5:17, “For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.”

We, for some reason, have convinced ourselves that God is out to ruin our lives and is out to control us with a bunch of rules and laws. We’ve convinced ourselves that God is waiting at every chance He gets to condemn us the moment we disobey.

Yet, the Bible tells us that the Laws of God actually free us from the very condemnation we assume God initiates. In fact, the judgement that we feel from God is really Him trying to redirect us toward right living.

God wants nothing more than for us to realize the best versions of ourselves. And it’s in the realization and the living out of that we truly become who God creates us to be.

What we often fail to realize, unfortunately, is that, amidst us choosing our own path and living in disobedience to God, our choices negatively affect others.

This is true, especially, with our loved ones.

When we ignore God’s direction and go toward the destructive path of disobedience, those around us suffer too. Our disobedience usually leads to frustration; which we end up taking out our frustrations on others. Our disobedience leads to anger; which we become angry with our circle of friends and family. Our disobedience to God catalyzes us toward paralysis; which we end up slowing others down from pursuing God’s call on their lives.

A believer’s disobedience not only affects him or her, but it affects others as well.

But when a believer chooses to walk in obedience, freedom is released for everyone around.