Scripture Reading: Isaiah 40:28-31, Psalm 23:1-6, Matthew 11:25-30, Mark 6:30-31, Revelation 14:13
New York has been known for decades as “the city that never sleeps.” Twenty-four-hour diners, cafes, and bodegas are commonplace. At any hour of the night, I can walk down to my corner bodega and order a bacon, egg, and cheese on a roll, and no one would even bat an eye at the time. Sometimes I see this as a luxury—I can have anything! At any time! But other times, I realize that it’s no wonder we’re all so exhausted all the time. New Yorkers just don’t get much sleep, and we hardly ever truly rest.
Whether you live in the city that never sleeps, a sweet, sleepy suburb, or somewhere in between, rest can be hard to come by. In a culture where who you are is so often seen as dependent on what you do, we often run ourselves ragged trying to prove that we’re good enough. We push and push and push, striving for the next paycheck, the next promotion, or the next benchmark of what we think our lives should look like. When someone asks us how we’re doing, we say, “Busy, but good!” Busyness is seen as a sort of badge of honor. Add in holiday craziness to already jam-packed schedules and by January 1, we’re walking around with dazed looks on our faces, unsure what day of the week it is.
Our culture might promote this hustle lifestyle, but Christ calls us to a different way of living. He calls us to true rest.
But the beauty of this rest is that it’s not something that we have to strive for. We’re not working for the weekends when it comes to the rest that Christ offers. Jesus says in Matthew 11, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” All we have to do to get this rest is simply come to Him. He gives us this rest because He is the rest for our souls. We find true rest when we find ourselves rooted and established in him.
The rest provided to us in Christ gives us cause for joy, for celebration. We find joy in Christ’s rest because we finally can lay down the burdens we’ve been carrying and delight in His presence. We can dwell with Him in the house of the Lord. No more striving, no more running ourselves ragged. When we slow down and bask in his presence, we find that true rest isn’t dependent on our performance or persistence at all. It’s only dependent on the person of Jesus Christ. All we have to do is sit with Him.
Written by Ellen Taylor
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23 thoughts on "Joy Through Rest"
REST. Such a personal topic for me. This past year has been a revelation of my need for rest. I e always liked being busy, but this year, I wore busyness like a badge of honor, pushing myself relentlessly. And it left me burned out and jaded; don’t ask me much about my personal relationships during that time, because my only memories are of work and an exhausted me. I was burned out, I walked away from the work I was doing.
Looking back, I see how God’s hand was at work. Through prayer, I sought guidance, asking that doors would only open if they aligned with His will for my life. This summer I found a new job—one that not only aligns with my values but offers the flexibility and joy I had been missing. More importantly— it offers me rest. I truly believe that surrendering my plans to God and trusting Him with the outcome made all the difference.
I’ve come to deeply appreciate the importance of rest and the intentionality of embracing moments that make me pause. More than anything, I continue to learn the value of centering my life on how Jesus calls me to live.
Rest does not mean not doing any work, for even Jesus talked about sharing His yoke, which was something the animals work to work the land. It is relying o Jesus to do the heavy lifting, so to speak. It’s more about relentless striving and a chaotic pace.
May we know the difference and truat Him to lead us to balance and peace.
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Praying especially for all the caregivers today, that Jesus would give you a deep sense of rest as you care for your loved ones.
Rest. You know I often think rest is something that I have to earn. I have to get everything done. Then, I can rest. Just one more thing. I need to accomplish this. My mom used to put it this way and her heart was right but my mind took it to a wrong place. She used to say “do what you HAVE to do, then, you can do what you WANT to do.” The problem with that is we can always finds something that has to be done. But if we follow the example of Sweet disciple Mary, we can choose the better part amidst all that still “needs” to be done and turn to the one thing that is “needful”. Resting and being in Jesus’ presence! So much good in today! Have a good one, she’s!
Couldn’t help but be reminded as I read these passages how much importance God places on rest- from creating the Sabbath and commanding us to keep it holy, to Jesus regularly retreating for prayer and rest in the Father and commanding His disciples to do the same. If it’s something Christ does, so should I.
Maybe the hurry, the busy, the overwork leads way to our weariness which blurs our minds and removes our attentiveness to God. When we don’t remain “ready”, sin creeps in and burdens ensure. God knows this is why we need rest. To remain fixated on Him and not of our own ambitions or busy schedules!
Thank you Jesus ♥️
Rest … as elusive as the pot of gold at the end of a rainbow when I look for it on my own. I know that, and yet my exhausted self still tries to find it. Lord, help me turn to You for all the types of rest I need and to sit in the joy that’s waiting.
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These verses ❤️
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My quiet time in the early morning is cherished time – with the Lord and with my sisters here. Thanks to each of you who meet me here throughout the day, praying, studying and encouraging. Thank you, SRT, for the work that goes into making it happen each month – I look forward to the book for each study.
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Praying for:
LYNNE FROM AL – praying for healing, hope you are feeling better today. ❤️
MARI V – ongoing financial provision, and I love your kids!! ❤️
MELANI – your brother’s recovery
LEXI B – continued healing from church hurt
ERICA CHIARELLI – financial provision
FOSTER MAMA – wisdom and guidance in the fostering decision ❤️
LISA H – for Cora ❤️
BARB D – your community in beginning the healing process from the tragedy. Your service is appreciated! Praying for protection and wisdom.
THEA – for wisdom and guidance in working out the details for living near your in-law’s.
CINDY DIAZ – your job search, that the Lord will guide in applications. So sorry about the layoff!! We dealt with a similar situation many years ago, also at the holidays – God had other plans, and they were great.
SARAH M – daughter’s release, for protection and guidance for you
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KRIS – loved the recitation of issues and reminder to focus on Jesus
MERCY ❤️
TRACI GENDRON ❤️
CEE GEE – ❤️ another new-to-me song, will look it up
TINA ❤️
Oh Searching I feel your first paragraph. Lord you want me to rest so I’ll try to find your rest instead of showing up and letting Him do and be my rest. A challenge I too struggle with daily!
Come, thou long-expected Jesus. Let us find our rest in Thee.
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Yes Kelly H, come Jesus come!
Yes❤️
Lynn from Alabama. Oh how I relate to you! No time off in a year and a ha!f has been so hard for me! Laughingly told my DIL that was what I wanted for Christmas! Will it happen?? Probably not, but our strength is the LORD. My hubby and I were laughing the other night about our marriage vows almost 61 years ago… for better or worse, richer or poorer, in sickness and health and how much has changed in those areas over the last few years. Our joy comes from God. Praying daily for you and other caregiver friends. May you quickly recover from sickness. Not fun for us and particularly during this season. Love you sweet sister!
Isn’t ironic that we have to work so hard to find rest? That we even have to be told by Jesus that He can give us rest for our souls? This has been my journey for the last few years and I wonder know how I kept going, burning through my tasks whereas now my life looks so different – very deliberate time for stillness and quiet, Sabbath days with rest (albeit sometimes that might only be a few hours) and I know when my soul needs to catch up to my body. I no longer want to “busy but good” to be part of my vocabulary because God has shown me how much I need REST!
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Dear Beloved Lord Jesus. We enter into your Peace today. We take a Deep Breath. We pause and lift up on hands to worship you Lord Jesus. It’s all about you. We surrender all to you. We Love you Lord Jesus. Fill us with your Joy. We look forward to the Hope that you know the Plan. We ask you what is the best next step of Faith we can take today? Help us to do all things through you who infuses us with Supernatural Strength. We rejoice in you Lord Jesus. For the Joy of the Lord is our Strength. Now Lead us to your Glory. In Jesus name amen
Amen
What a beautiful prayer. Thank you for sharing this.
Amen! I love the question you posed. What is the next best step of faith we can take? Something to ponder…
Amen!
Amen
Off on a bit of a rabbit trail this morning Ladies, but the pairing of knowledge and rest for the Matthew 11 passage got me to wondering what the two have in common. Maybe it’s once we have knowledge of who the Father is and how much He loves us, it’s an inducement to rest… We can stop trying so hard to prove something. Because after all, ‘He’s got the whole world in His hands’!!
Random thoughts from a body that’s on year-end overload for your Thursday:) Hope it’s a blessed day for each of you!
Sally that is such a good insight! We need to know and trust who God says he is. If we don’t then how can we rest in Him?
Sally, I love this insight because I was wondering the same. Thank you, sister.