What Does it Mean to Rest - Jeremy Thom

How’s your summer been? You might answer with a word like fun, busy, full, crazy, boring, or it’s just like any other day. But you know what word I don’t often hear people use when talking about the summer…restful.

When the sun comes out we tend to use it to the fullest. Whether that’s enjoying God’s creation, creating great memories on the family vacation, or working in the yard and on the to-do list. Our tendency is to find ways to fill the limited time of sunshine that we have. These are all great things, but then we get to the end of summer and often find ourselves repeating the tagline, “boy, I need a vacation from the vacation.” 

Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t need summer busyness to make me feel this way. Often I’ll get to the end of a day and feel like I need a vacation from the day. I wonder why I’m so tired and wiped out. I think through my day, the good and the tough, and begin to figure out how to do it again the next day and not be so wiped out. And then I’m wiped out again, and the cycle continues.

This cycle seems to be at its worst when life is really challenging. God has used a couple of the hardest seasons in my life to teach, and re-teach, me a valuable lesson…rest, go to bed! 

“What!?! That’s the lesson? I can’t rest right now, I’ve got to figure this out. I’ve got to fix this problem, provide for and protect my family, and figure out why these tough things are happening. I’m so close to figuring out the solution, I can’t rest now.”

Do you remember the story of Gideon? Gideon was called by the LORD to lead the Israelites into battle (Judges 6-7). In preparation for this battle, the LORD cut Gideon’s army from 32,000 men down to 300. He did this so that the people would know that it was God who brought victory, not the hands of the Israelites (Judges 7:4). In a similar way, in seasons of life that have felt like a battle, God has said to me, “Jeremy, get some rest, go to bed so that you will not be able to boast of your own wisdom or strength. I’ve got this and you will know that victory has come through me.”

King David writes of this kind of rest in the Psalms. In a season of running for his life from his own son, David recognizes God’s protection and is able to write (Psalm 3:5), “I lay down and slept; I woke again, for the Lord sustained me.” I find myself imagining David being surprised when he woke up the next day. I’m not sure he expected to still be alive. But David trusted God enough to give it a try, and rest. And the LORD took care of him. Then in Psalm 4:8, David acknowledges again, “In peace I will both lie down and sleep, for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.”

To rest, to sleep, is to trust in the LORD’s provision and protection. 

Sleep is not really my greatest gift. I stay up a little too late and don’t sleep for very long. But I can testify to the fact that God doesn’t need much time to accomplish His work. I’ve had moments of waking up to a hard situation being resolved. Other times of waking up with a changed perspective about a tough conversation or relationship. And still other times of waking up to nothing changing at all, yet knowing that the LORD had sustained and protected me. But that’s the thing about trusting in the LORD. We don’t know what he is going to do, we just know that it will be the best thing when we seek and trust him.

And yes, rest/sleep is a normal part of life, but we often go into rest a little too eager to escape our day, or too reluctant as we try to hold on to the control of our days. God wants us to take these routine moments and turn them into opportunities to trust him. To sleep is to trust in the LORD’s provision and protection. To rest is to actively respond to Jesus’ invitation, “come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matt. 11:28)

Resting is not about being lazy, dodging commitments, or running away from challenges, it’s about trusting that when the God of the universe says to you, “I got this”, you know that he really means it!

Summer is not over yet. My recommendation….find a good tree, sit under the protection of its shade, tell God you trust him, and enjoy the rest. You may not wake up to what you expected, but you will wake up to the best thing because it will be a God thing.

 

Jeremy Thom 
Campus Pastor | Hope City Church