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The Battle Between Rushing & Resting

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Rest in Christ

We have a broken world.

Your power is in Christ.

He is the authority.

“For this is my yoke.”

Are you resting or are you doing?

These words were scribbled by my six year old’s hands as he listened intently to the sermon last Sunday. As I was taking note, he asked for a sheet of my paper and a pen. I figured he was going to draw a racetrack or cars. Then I saw this. I stored it up in my heart and tried not to act embarrassing to him 😉

I hope this message from Matthew 11:28-30 takes root in his life as it has in mine:

Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” (‭Matthew‬ ‭11‬:‭28-30‬ NLT)

Who doesn’t want rest for your souls? Who wants to feel weary and heavy burdened? No one. But how many of us do? The majority of us at times. But why?

1. We place burdens on our shoulders that Jesus never meant for us to bear.

I know do this. I get so excited about a new fun opportunity and think I can cram 60 min a week into a time slot of 15 min. (Even though my brain doesn’t even function naturally on a schedule so I have no time slots mapped out. It’s all in my head which is even more dangerous, right? 😉) Enter my need for this book which I’ve been LOVING:

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The burden or “job” Jesus meant for us to be joyfully doing gets suffocated & rushed & irritating because we are juggling it with an assignment we gave ourselves.

There’s no restful feeling in rushing around.

Have you tried to get your kids ready to leave the house from pajamas to fully dressed & ready in 10 minutes? Try it for fun and see how fast your heart beats. That’s rushing if you need to experience it!

Rushing and resting can’t happen at the same time in the same heart. I’m trying this endeavor & so far it’s a fail.

“If I really want an unrushed life, I must underwhelm my schedule so God has room to overwhelm my soul.” – Lysa Terkeurst, The Best Yes

Maybe I am particularly struggling with this because I lived in Uganda for 3 months this year, where NO ONE rushes and time is not “kept.” There isn’t an excess of activities because there isn’t an excess of resources.

Bless Sharon’s heart, she’s doing so well adjusting to this American lifestyle. She used to only live at the orphanage & walk a hundred yards to preschool & back everyday. Now she climbs into the minivan every time mommy says its time to go. Her sentences are still spoken using Ugandan syntax: “We’re going where?” I’d like to say we aren’t going anywhere today, we are just going to stay home and REST. And minus church yesterday, that exactly what we got to do. A real sabbath. Rest in Christ. Time to enjoy the blessings, reflect on his Word, listen for His voice. So I’ve taken Jesus’s words to heart & this is what He’s taught me: 1. Come to Him first. First thing in the morning.

Seek His face to be filled with his peace, which will set my soul up for resting in him, even while my body is hard at work serving my family (aka running around in circles trying to enjoy them and not yell) the rest of the day.

Seek His face for direction. What do you have for me today? What’s important, what’s worthy of my time & attention?

2. Come to him during the day as I am “doing.”

We don’t always have to be still at Jesus’s feet to rest in him. We can invite his supernatural peace to overwhelm our hearts at anytime. One habit we do is praying out loud in the car on our way to places. Now if we are quickly approaching our destination & mommy hasn’t prayed, Sharon reminds me 🙂

3. Keep eternal perspective.

We are merely moving shadows, and all our busy rushing ends in nothing. (Psalms‬ ‭39‬:‭6‬ NLT)

We are here on earth one minute and gone the next. The errand or activity we are doing or headed to may feel so important, and therefore create this crazy, non restful tension in my heart & therefore my parenting, marriage or other relationships.

But what’s really important? Lasting things. Faith. Hope. Love.

Asking Jesus to help us stay focused on these things will bring rest to our souls, lighten our burdens, and reveal more and more of his humble, gentle, beautiful heart to us.

Here’s to less rushing & more resting.

Amy

Green Pastures

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Psalm 23
A psalm of David.

1 The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
3 he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
for his name’s sake.
4 Even though I walk
through the darkest valley,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.
5 You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
6 Surely your goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

This chapter makes you think of funerals, right? Me too. But what a waste that is. This chapter is for the land of the living. I came across it twice this week, once in a book I’m reading, and once in my children’s Bible. Any time this happens I make sure and take note as I take it as a message God’s trying to get me to hear.

I had every intention of waking up early enough this morning to spend time digging into this chapter and praying over it before everyone else in the house woke up. But I’m out of the habit of waking up early my 6:30 alarm hasn’t gone off and several days.

Before I knew it the hustle and bustle of the day was in full force. Breakfast had to be made and everyone in the family had needs and voices that needed to be heard. We had a wonderful plan for the day of going swimming at the gym and then taking the kids to a surprise.

As I told my girls about our plans for the day all of a sudden I felt dizzy and saw green stars when I looked at them.

And then My Shepherd said it’s time for you to lay down. Before I knew it I had one little girl singing me lullabies and one fetching the hairbrush so I could try to put her hair in a lopsided bun amidst the green stars I was seeing. I think sometimes God allows us to experience difficulties just so we will slow down and really listen for His voice. If you’ve never experienced A migraine let me tell you it will make you lay down, just as the psalm says.

I didn’t feel like I was in a green pasture. My head was throbbing. I was so lightheaded that even if I wanted to there was no way I could get up.

I knew it was exactly where God wanted me. Still and quiet and needy of Him. Of course I prayed that Jesus would heal me. And I know he will in due time. But I told him I trust him and I surrendered these ailments to him. He has a purpose and a reason for these debilitating headaches that make me lie down and make my day stop.

Suddenly I had time to sit still at his feet, because I was unable to stand on my own. Funny how it takes that sometimes to get us to that quiet place before him, humbled at his feet.

I listened to Psalm 23 on repeat on my phone as I memorized it. I pushed my plans of training for a triathlon, finally taking my Christmas tree down, and plans to take the kids to a movie out of my head. God is in control and for some reason he decided for me that all that had to come to a hault that day.

The green pasture had had for me was a fluffy recliner with sweet African girl rubbing my arm, singing me lullabies.

The quiet waters He led me beside were in the bubble bath with cucumbers on my eyes.

He refreshed my soul with a quiet house when Nick took the kids to the gym and I was able to hide his word in my heart.

What green pastures has he made you lay down in lately? Did you feel his presence in the dark valleys? Is your cup overflowing or half full?

His goodness and love will follow us all the days of our lives. These troubles are temporary in light of eternity, no matter how heavy they feel.

Amy