There is rest for the children of God! God wants us to rest! He first wants us “rest-assured” of our salvation (believing in and receiving Christ as Savior). John 1:12 says all who receive Him are given the power or right to become His children. We are fully accepted in one transaction to enter His rest! We give him our sin and receive His salvation, which means deliverance, preservation and safety! It’s our present and future possession! Upon entering His rest, we can cease from worry, constant striving, always trying to measure up, trying to figure things out, or always feeling obligated to relentless, non-productive, consuming, tiring activities. In Luke 10:38-42 Jesus went to the home of some friends. Martha was “distracted from Him”, in a flurry, with much serving. Her sister, Mary, on the other hand, was sitting at His feet, listening to Him. Jesus said, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part”. On another occasion, Jesus told His disciples to come aside by themselves, to a deserted place and rest a while; Mark 6:31. Even God rested on the seventh day after He created everything. REST, pulling back, is good and necessary! It’s refreshing and rejuvenating! Sometimes we think we don’t have time, but God can add the necessary time back to us! We don’t have to shortchange ourselves! How can we come to this restful place? We can ree”valu”ate our lives, to see what is valuable and what is fluff. We can carve out some time to bring our baskets before God, so to speak, empty them, and prayerfully ask God to place in them what He knows is best. Some things we may be reluctant to let go of because they seem to bring us a sense of security. But our real security is in God, in His will and plan for our lives. Jesus desires for us to come aside and rest our weary minds and bodies. Like the disciple, John, at the last supper, let us recline against Jesus chest, listen to His heart and become refreshed in His presence. We don’t have to take on the world, Jesus did! We just need to our part. When we’re asked to go somewhere or do something, we can ask God if we should agree. Some things may be very good, but they may not be good for us, as God knows what we need to be doing and where we need to be at all times, influencing our sphere. They will only deplete our part (which God can multiply) and the wonderful things God has planned! Lighten up your basket! Instead of being burnt-out, you can burn brightly for Jesus, The Light of the World! Enjoy your life, as there are pleasures in Him forevermore; Psalm 16:11!
GOD WANTS US TO REST!
