Rest

Is rest something that comes easy to you or are you the type of person that has to carve out time for it? What does it actually mean to rest? I have times when my physical body is at a state of rest, but my brain is working so I don’t feel particularly at rest. Is rest a word that is overused like others and has therefore lost it’s meaning? I’m not sure, but I do know that it gets used for a wide variety of things and that’s what I’ve been thinking about lately. We talk about resting after an excursion and also say “Rest in Peace” when someone passes away, so I know that it serves a different purpose depending on the situation. As a mama of little ones I find rest to be particularly hard in this current season of life, so I have to carve out time for it and be aware of what type of rest I’m actually in need of.

I think that the way we think about rest greatly impacts how well we’re able to do it. God rested on the seventh day of creation (Gen. 2:2-3) and commands His people to rest on the Sabbath (Ex. 23:12; Lev. 23:3) which tells me that rest is important and necessary. I also know that there is a difference between resting and becoming lazy. Proverbs 6:10-11 says, “A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man.” This verse reminds me that, like many good things, too much of them can lead to trouble. Rest is good and necessary, but too much of it and we can find ourselves in trouble.

So, as I think about rest in this season of my life I really wonder what it looks like to rest well. There is the physical exhaustion that comes from a lack of sleep and being in the third trimester of pregnancy. There is also the mental exhaustion that comes from thinking too much about the future and what life with three little ones so close in age will be like. There is also the emotional exhaustion of hormones mixed with a desire to be the wife and mama God has called me to be and the battle to not allow my emotions to take over. There are so many areas currently that make me feel in desperate need of rest and yet God continues to sustain me through it all even when I don’t get the rest that I think I need.

I’ve really had to rethink what rest looks like for me right now and that is challenging for me. For example, I really enjoy sleeping. I like to lay down knowing that I don’t have to wake up until my body is well rested and prefer at least an eight hour window where my only priority is to get good sleep. While sleep is an aspect of rest — a much needed one — my current season doesn’t allow for such a long window of luxury. I’m in a season of very short windows of time to sleep and when I allow my emotions to take over I become quite frustrated and cranky about it. I know that it won’t last forever and that it is only season — which makes it bearable even though it can feel like more than I can bear in the moment. It has also led me to be extremely grateful for the times when I am able to sleep.

There is also an aspect of rest that is mental. Mental rest is necessary for me because otherwise I overthink things and become frustrated by them. If I don’t remember to take my thoughts captive like 2 Corinthians 10:5 says, then I tend to spiral and that never leads to peace for me. When I find myself over thinking about things that are beyond my control or I find myself unable to sleep because of something I’m thinking about, I have to stop and take my thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ. He is the One that can calm my anxious thoughts and guard my heart and mind (Phl 4:6-7). I find mental rest to be the most challenging in this season when I think about my children because I want to make sure I’m doing everything I can to raise them well and in the way that God wants me to. If I think about the future and what it will look like for them or begin to question if I’m doing this whole parenting thing well too much, it becomes an anxious thought that never leads me to rest. I have to be intentional about mental rest because it requires me to re-focus on the One who is in control and can give me the rest that I so deeply desire.

The last aspect of rest I’m going to touch on today is the emotional aspect. My emotions can quickly lead me down a path that spirals far away from rest if I don’t remember to take control of them. Sure there are times when I need to feel things deeply and maybe mourn or grieve over something (Ecc. 3:4). The problem for me arises when I allow my emotions to steamroll over reality and lead me to believe things that are not true — which is exhausting. When I get caught in the “what if” or “if only” spirals of life it can really take a toll on me emotionally and leave me in a place where rest is nowhere to be found. My thoughts and emotions are closely related and often play off of each other — in a positive and negative way. When I become overly emotional I lose sight of reality and imagine things that aren’t necessarily true. One recent example of this was saying to Marc that I felt like a failure as a mother because I can’t figure out why one of our boys doesn’t sleep well at night. We’ve tried SO many things and I feel like as his mama I should know why. Marc had to speak truth to me in that moment and remind that it isn’t because I’m a failure. Without truth, my emotions quickly lead to untrue thoughts.

In Matthew 11:28-30 Jesus says, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” The rest that I need — that I think many of us need — is the rest that is found in Jesus. He is where I can find rest even in this season of motherhood that doesn’t feel particularly restful. He is where I can bring my anxious thoughts and ALL of my emotions and still find rest. He is a loving and generous God who will allow us to find rest in Him no matter the season. He says to learn from Him because He is gentle — what a gift that we get to go to a gentle Father and find rest. He will lead me through this season and He will lead you through yours if we only let Him. I pray that we are able to find rest in Him and feel the peace that only comes from Him.

Is rest something that comes easy for you or do you have to carve out time for it?

Song(s) of the Week: This week I chose “Rescue” by Lauren Daigle because I like it. Enjoy!