Learning How To Rest
At Camp Twin Lakes, where I spent my last three summers, we have a one hour break after lunch and before sessions begin called ‘Shoes off.” Seriously, a God blessed hour of the day. I don’t know how I would have ever survived my summers on staff without that hour of rest! Campers who thought they were too old or too cool to sleep during Shoes-Off were typically the campers who nodded off, mouth open, in the dining hall at the dinner table.
This month in Cambodia, we also have a rest hour after lunch and before my English class. Again, such a blessed hour in my schedule! I spend my hour laying down cooling off from the heat, resting my eyes, or just sitting for a while in silence. Most Cambodians also participate by closing their shops, children return home, and everyone takes a short rest in the afternoon. Geniuses!
Typically when we think of Christianity we think of:
Striving to be like Christ
Being a follower of God
Repenting of our sins
Loving our neighbor
Serving in the church
Giving to those in need
Paying our tithes
Volunteering in the Children’s Ministry
“Christianity” seems to be followed by a long list of –ings, verbs. Understandably, this is so. In response to His love for us, we want to give of our selves and our talents to best serve and give Him glory. God does say in James 2:26, “As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.”
But, how often do we forget that sitting, listening, and resting in Him are high on Christ’s priority list for his followers?
Matthew 11:28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”
1 John 3:19 “This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence.”
Hebrews 4: 9-11 “Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.”
As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one.Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:38-41
Martha was serving Jesus. How was she at fault? Mary sat and listened to Jesus. She wasn’t listening to him on a podcast while preparing lunch or while sitting in her car on her way to work.
As Americans we have an enormous to-do list everyday. We are very good at doing this or doing that. We are unaccustomed to the idea of ‘not-doing’ anything. Even the thought of being at rest doesn’t sit well with most of us. We don’t have time to rest because we are too busy being ‘Marthas’ serving God, our families, and our jobs. However, if holy actions become our identity and our definition of Christianity, then we are mistaken and have missed the point of who we are. Remember, the root word of Christianity is Christ. When we begin and end each day doing, going, and serving and forget to rest at the feet of Jesus, we have missed His point.
One morning, last week during our usual time of prayer walking in the city we were instructed by our leader that instead we were going to say home and minister to Jesus by resting and listening to Him. Wow, such an unusual and eye opening reminder.
When we begin our morning by intentionally sitting and devoting time to God to be our literal daily bread, renewing our minds, and filling us with His Spirit then we are able to serve throughout our day in a renewed overflow from Him rather than from our own strengths. Taking it one step further, our time with God is usually spent reading the Bible, reading a devotion, worshiping in songs, and journaling without ever spending anytime just resting and listening to Him. Too often we forget that, “He says, ‘Be still, and know that I am God’” (Ps. 46:10).
As hard as it is for us (me) to begin the process of learning to rest in God and listen to Him speak to us, I am so thankful that resting in Him is pleasing to Him. I feel a sigh of relieve remembering that Christ wants us to be like Mary and merely enjoy time with Him! When I sit in the stillness and focus on Christ every distraction is another area of life that I can quickly give to Him, return my focus on Him, and become one step closer to Him.
Rest well!
