Rest

Rest ....  A difficult theme for most of us in our culture today.  I find myself often feeling guilty about taking a break.  For some reason I have a negative view of rest.  Maybe it has to do with the work ethic I have that was instilled in me by my parents?  Maybe it has to do with the attitude our society has towards the topic?  Or maybe it is even deeper?

As I pondered rest, I thought about the "rest principle" God gives us in Genesis.  He creates the 7th day (or Sabbath Day) and calls for it to be a day of rest.  We were created to work 6 days and rest one.  This can sound a like a little much in a society that views rest as time off work.  Many take the idea that they work 5 and are off 2 days to mean that they follow the rest principle really well.  But I don't think most of us do.

I am pretty sure that most people with their multiple days off in a row, still do not rest very well.  Most of us believe that by doing projects around the house or yard, working on our car, going shopping, etc... we are getting our break from work.  Yet we really fail to rest.  We are sometimes busier when we are not at work, we are just busy with other things.  Even when we would say we are not busy, in the back of our minds we think that someone may think less of us if we really did "NOTHING" for a few hours or even (GASP) a day.  Yet I believe God made us to function better if we rest properly.

I am not really good at this yet, I am growing and God is working in me.  I find my family struggles with this as well.  Often a time of really resting leave them feeling like they wasted a day.  The challenge for me and I hope also for you, is for us to "redeem" our time.  Sometimes we need rest, rest from thinking as well as doing.  But sometimes we need the rest and refreshment only God can give us.  We need to remember that God is our true place of "sabbath".  He is the one who gives us True Rest and Refreshment.

Anyway I should get some sleep.   Hmmmm ... Conviction setting in?

Good night

Pastor Bruce