Need rest? God has a plan for that.

The writing of this column was prompted by seeing a picture of a beautiful young mom named Caitlin whose T-shirt was imprinted with the words ‘I’M SO TIRED.’ Her 5 month old son, Nash, had the words ‘I’M NOT TIRED’ on his T-shirt.

No matter what stage of life you are in, there is always a need for rest- even if you think you are okay without it.

Some examples about rest in the Bible:

• Exodus 31:17 In six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed.
• Mark 6:31-32 Jesus took his disciples in a boat to get away from the crowds and to go into a time of rest.
• Matthew 8:24 A great tempest arose in the sea. The ship was covered with waves. Jesus was asleep. (Yes, Jesus was resting in the middle of the storm! Great reminder for those of us who worry.)

God demonstrated the importance of rest by resting, and showed that rest was refreshing and well …. restful.

So, what is rest? Definitions include: 1) A bodily state characterized by minimal functional activity. (Sitting or reclining?) 2) Freedom from labor. (Doing nothing?) 3) A state of motionless. (Perhaps a nap?)

Charles Spurgeon stated, “In the long run, we shall do more by sometimes doing less.”

Convinced? Ready to rest? It will take dedication and commitment, but there are quite a few RE-wards when you RE-st:

• RE-fresh • RE-member • RE-store • RE-direct • RE-lax • RE-juvenate • RE-cover • RE-group • RE-vitalize • RE-connect — You get the idea!

My challenge to you is to intentionally make time for rest this week and see how you like it!

As a teacher, I constantly worked at home on schoolwork. I felt God leading me to commit to setting aside Sunday as a day of rest, and I did! Yes, I am talking about working six days a week and resting on the seventh day. (Not only did I stop doing schoolwork on Sunday, but housework, as well!) It allows more time with my family, more time in worship, and I am more rested and ready for the week ahead. It may very well have been one of the most helpful steps I have taken in my Christian life.

If you don’t feel you can ‘jump’ into that commitment, how about a daily time of rest? 10, 20, or 30 minutes where you do whatever you personally feel is restful. Create your plan and schedule it into your day. You deserve it. God set the example. Jesus set the example. That’s enough for me.

Ready…. set….REST!

One more thing…. as for Caitlin (or her husband) getting any rest, my recommendation would be to teach Nash as soon as possible to say ‘Nana’ and ‘Grandaddy.’ That should help.