God wants to give you rest!

I sometimes enjoy thinking about just how life was in the past. One noticeable difference between then and the present age is the lack of electricity and machinery to help with everyday duties. How did people in the centuries before Thomas Edison find time to do anything? Doing laundry with washboards, plowing with oxen, hauling water and chopping wood are just a few of the day to day tasks that would have consumed every waking moment.

Yet, some history books tell stories of dances, buggy rides, picnics and more. In fact, just visiting a neighbor on a Summer afternoon took a lot more time than it does today, but the stories I used to hear from my grandparents (who did not drive everyplace they wanted to go) tell me they knew the people who lived down the road from them much better than I know my own.

It would seem that in harnessing electricity and inventing modern “conveniences,” we’ve created a monster that devours our rest. In most households today, both parents have to work just to get by, and because every child has more than a few extracurricular activities, everyone is always on the go. I think that most parents would love to have a week when everyone could just stay home every single day. Even the “lazy days of Summer” aren’t anymore. We rush from work to activity to the next important event and before we know it the season of sitting in the Sun is in the past. Most of us would just like to have some time to rest.

When I read this passage in Hebrews that is written below and put it up against my own life, I smile. There have been many years when I felt like I needed some time off, a break from life. Yet, when I am completely obedient to Christ and do only the things that are His will for my life, I find rest. Some may tell you that the author of Hebrews is speaking of a rest far in the future, after Christ returns. However, I hold on to verse three, “those who have believed enter that rest.” God’s rest is available to us today; it’s not just something to look forward to after we die or when Christ returns.Yes, indeed, there is the ultimate “rest” that is reserved for those who make Christ their Savior, but what if we are missing out on peace and “rest” here on earth because we are doing things Christ never asked us to do? What if we are teaching our children how to be busy instead of how to love Jesus?

I wish I could say that I always enjoy God’s rest, but that’s not true. There are many times when I step outside of what God has called me to. I am eager to say yes when folks ask for assistance, and often I rush in to help where my Savior has other plans. I’ve learned to identify those times pretty quickly now because I feel very unsettled and overwhelmed.

I know that someday there will be a time of permanent rest, a peace beyond what we can know here on earth. There are some who long for that day! To be perfectly honest, while I look forward to Christ’s return, I’m enjoying where I am now, so I’m not as anxious as some. Regardless of how speedily you are hoping that day comes, I pray you are living in God’s rest even here on earth. It is available to those who believe and those who are willing to be obedient. Combine the message you’ve heard about Jesus Christ with your faith, believe that He will never lead you into a place where He cannot keep you, trust that He’s got it all under control and enjoy the beauty of his rest.

“Since the promise of entering God’s rest still stands,
let’s be careful that no one misses out on it.”

Hebrews 4:1

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