Our Source of Rest

As a mama of two young and wildly energetic girls who is also trying to start a business from scratch, I have to confess I often crave rest. More specifically, I crave sleep. A while back, as the daily grind of all that is my life began to take its toll, I started to wear down and fatigue became my constant companion. I believed the answer to restoration lay in things such as more sleep, time spent with girlfriends, retreats, vacations, evenings off from putting the girls to bed, or date nights. I thought these things would make me feel better, but as the hours of my much-anticipated “me time” slipped away, I was left still feeling despondent and not at all refreshed.

Rest became an idol I craved and I was never satisfied when I tried to achieve it by the methods mentioned previously. The problem is I was looking for rest in all the wrong places. I’m not saying sleep and self-care aren’t important. But when we seek refreshment only through these things and fail to understand that our only true Source of rest and refreshment is God, it will never work.

Here’s some of what the Bible tells us about rest (all emphasis mine):

“Rest in God alone, my soul, for my hope comes from Him.” Psalm 62:5 (CSB)

“I’ll refresh tired bodies; I’ll restore tired souls.” Jeremiah 31:25 (MSG)

“Come to me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28 (CSB)

Our relationship with God is the key to a rested spirit, and a rested spirit does wonders to energize our physical bodies. Proverbs 19:23a tells us, “The fear of the Lord leads to life.” (CSB) The word “life” in this verse comes from the Hebrew “chay”, which may be translated as “revival; renewal”. Reverence for God, manifested in our lives as a commitment to seek fulfillment in Him alone, will lead to total renewal.

It’s easy to allow our daily responsibilities to convince us we don’t have time to invest in our relationship with God. But when we refuse to spend time fulfilling our role as God’s children by not spending time with Him in His Word and in prayer, we are shutting off the very flow of life into our spirits and bodies. Because we aren’t allowing God to pour Himself into us, we are making it infinitely harder on ourselves to fulfill our roles to those around us.

If you find yourself worn out from the demands of life, do yourself a favor today—stop what you’re doing, even if it’s only for five minutes. Turn your attention fully to the Father and confess that He is your only true Source of rest and energy. Ask Him to fill and revive you with His Spirit. Renew your commitment to grow your relationship with Him, and find true refreshment.