The Gift of Rest

Real rest can be hard to come by. Rest that replenishes the body, soul and spirit is what God desires for us. But, is this the kind of rest that we experience? Keep Reading…

READ
Exodus 20:8-11 - 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 manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

REFLECT
God worked hard, then rested. As the all-powerful Creator of the heavens and the earth, he did not suffer from tired muscles. No, he chose to rest. He chose not to be a workaholic.

The pattern that God set for us at the beginning of creation is important. So important that he restated it as a command in Exodus 20. Perhaps God knew our tendency towards over-working. If we were left unchecked in our work habits, we would end up destroying ourselves. And this is what happens when we disobey God's command to take a Sabbath.

Rest is more than a nap. It is experiencing the peace of God deep within. And this peace cannot be experienced without a personal relationship with God. So it is obedience to God and his ways that brings deep soul rest. This is what Hebrews 4:1 means, "Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it." We fall short of rest when we fail to obey God.

God tells us that it is important to stop our physical work… to take a day of rest. Some might take different days of rest from other people. That shouldn't be an issue. The point is making a choice to stop one's normal work each week. But it doesn't stop there. The rest time should be a "holy" time… meaning, a time set apart for meaningful connection with God.

People can be very religious about not working on the Sabbath. God always wants relationship with us, not religious acts. That is why he commands us to rest… so that we can experience the gift of his presence in a deep way. Of course, this experience of God should not be limited to one day a week. It is in the set apart days AND the in-between times that we can experience God's presence and his rest.

RESPOND
God's command is his gift. Receive this gift and enjoy deep and meaningful relationship with God as you rest with him. Find a new place to rest with God this week.