Psalm 131:1-3

Rest is a necessity for our bodies and our minds.  Unfortunately, it is often one of the most neglected necessities in our society today.  Advances in technology and demands upon our time as well as general expectations have all contributed to a lifestyle that keeps us from rest.  We stay up late in order to satisfy our thirst for entertainment and social connectivity then we get up early in order to rush to work where we are expected to perform at an intense level.  Our agendas are so full and our pace so frantic that we have very little time for physical rest and even lest time for mental rest.  This stress is taking its toll on our bodies, our minds and most dangerously on our relationships with the Lord.  We do not need to live this way.  God wants us to enjoy the life that He has given us and experience a life of resting in Him.  Here is what we must do in order to experience that rest.

BE HUMBLE: We must admit that we are under the Lord and His sovereign care.  Too often we live under the delusion that we are in control of our lives and the circumstances that surround us.  In essence we begin to take on the role of God.  If we are going to be able to rest in the Lord we must recognize His control over the world in which we live.  There is so much in life that is completely beyond our control and the sooner we recognize this fact and then surrender that “need to control” over to God the easier it will be for us to rest in Him.  Our pride and elevated sense of our own importance and abilities places a burden on us that we are unable and never intended to bare.  When we humbly surrender to the Lord’s sovereign control we can rest.

BE HAPPY: We must learn to be content with what God has provided.  There seems to be an insatiable desire within all of us that is constantly crying out for more.  We think we need more money, more friends, more things, more recognition, more time, more, more, more… Our appetite for more is so insatiable that it prevents us from enjoying what we already have.  So much stuff clutters our lives but we are still in pursuit of more stuff.  Of course all of this stuff has to be paid for and maintained to the point that we have no time to rest.  There is something so soothing about watching a baby sleep.  They are fed, clean, comfortable and content.  God wants us to be content in His gracious and abundant care so that we can happily enjoy His provision for us and find rest.

BE HOPEFUL: We do not live in a perfect world because of the sinfulness of men.  Even though God is in control and He has given us abundant provision; we still face difficult and painful realities in our lives.  Very bad things happen to us.  In the midst of war, tragedy, illness, unemployment and loss it is very hard to rest.  These are constant realities of the world in which we live.  Perhaps the greatest way in which we can find rest in the midst of these trials is through hope.  We must constantly remind ourselves of the promises of God for today as well as tomorrow.  He has promised to protect us from trials that are beyond the strength He provides and He has promised to give us an eternal home where none of these things will exist.  When the realities of life come crashing in we must resist the urge to panic and focus our minds on the promises of God.  These promises are a constant source of hope and allow us to find rest.