Teach Me How to…REST!

Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 (NLT) 
 
It can be a weird thing to realize that you do not know how to slow down, pause, and rest. Yet, so many of us struggle with the concept. I say it’s weird because it seems that we come here hardwired for rest. Babies sleep as if they have just pulled an all-nighter or worked a double shift. But as we age, we start to fight the very natural and necessary function of resting. Toddlers eschew naptime. Teens want to be up all night long. College students….well you get my point! Our world is hyperconnected and hurried. News never stops. Music never stops. Sports don’t stop. We can literally stream anything ALL day long! Whew. Life for most of us in the Western world runs at a frenetic pace and it’s limiting our ability to dream, see visions, and experience the true power of Holy Spirit in and through us. (See Acts 2:17) 
 
During or our annual month of rest in August, we will do a few things. We will again read through the Book of Proverbs and our sermon series will be focused upon wisdom. We will also move our worship service time up to 10am. This will allow us to have more time after service to enjoy the weather and our families and friends. I am asking that you pray now about how you can truly rest and get rejuvenated during this time. There is much work that Jesus is calling us into, but we will never get to it if we all always tired, stretched to our extremes, and disconnected. Jesus offers us rest. Let’s embrace it like never before in this season! 
 
Loving and praying for you,  
Pastor Danielle