This morning, I was reading Hebrews 4 and it got me to thinking about rest. What exactly is rest and am I doing it? Are you doing it?

On the seventh day, God rested from creating the earth and He called the Sabbath day holy and told His children not to do any work on that day. In today’s society, it seems people don’t get the rest they need and, because of that, we have depression, sickness, anger, frustration, etc. God knew what His people needed but sometimes we think we know better than God.

For myself, more often than not, the best rest I can get is sleeping in or lying down during the day after a long, stressful week. But rest is more than that. If I’m not able to shut my brain off from the cares of this world, I am not really resting. And, honestly, that is hard for me to do, but I am fighting to discipline myself to do just that.

If you’re not able to get much sleep, you can still draw near to the Lord and rest in Him. This is something I am still learning. I am not always able to sleep but I enjoy lying on my bed and praying and focusing on my Savior. I wouldn’t trade those times of feeling His arms around me for nothing!

During the times I am not able to rest like that, I still look for times that I can turn my heart and mind to the Lord. If I don’t get that time of prayer and/or worship, it affects me negatively. I am so grateful for the fact that no matter what I’m doing or where I’m at or who is around, no one else can control my mind.

It is also important to rest in the Lord during times of trial. We need to get to the point where we can honestly say, “For I know whate’er befalls me, Jesus doeth all things well.” When you can sing that with all your heart, you will truly be able to rest in knowing that God has a plan. Your job is just to trust.

I often speak to myself when I write, and this is no exception. I have a hard time accepting things that I don’t want to accept, but I can attest that I grow more through the hard times than at any other time.

My question to you today is: Are you resting? Forget everything that is going on in your life and surrender to Jesus. That is where you will find the greatest rest for your soul.