Human bodies need rest. It is vital to maintaining that balance of well-being, physically and emotionally, also known as homeostasis.
Kids need rest to grow. Everyone looks forward to vacations, weekends, or holidays to allow bodies and minds a time to reset. True, we can compensate for a short time of running on minimal rest — but we soon crash or cause damage by ignoring the body’s signals that it needs to stop. Like video game characters, when energy levels drop, a recharge must happen in order to continue. All creation needs rest.
God gave us this example of rest. Creation week includes the Sabbath day – or, “Day of Rest.” Was God tired? No. He is all-powerful and does not have the limitations of a human body. He was, however, instituting a principle. He knew that we needed rest. It is repeated over and over in the law: the Sabbath day was to be strictly observed. Even Sabbath years of rest for the land were commanded.
Integral to being able to receive complete rest is having a mind and soul that is calm. Without that, we are kind of like my kids’ tablets: always running on low charge and on the verge of shutting down. How do we find that calm to allow our minds to receive the rest they need?
Scripture tells us that we can only know true rest in Jesus. Rest comes in knowing that all things are in the hands of an All-Knowing, All-Powerful, All-Present God. When we lay our burdens down, no matter how big and heavy they are, we can receive complete rest.
Jesus brought peace to a storm — He demonstrated complete rest as He slept in the bottom of the boat as it rocked in the waves and terrified the disciples. Only through Jesus can we know this complete rest that we need.
The New Testament book of Hebrews tells us that Jesus entered into that Sabbath rest pictured by the law after He completed the work of atonement on the cross (Hebrews 10:12). We are invited to share in that rest! He shares that opportunity for complete peace and rejuvenation for our souls with us! What an honor!
“Be diligent to enter into that rest” (Hebrews 4:11, NKJV) — is a conscious action, offered to all who seek the Savior. They may come to Him and lay down all concerns and cares, all busyness, and “enter in” to that rest. It is a place of safety.
As we seek rest for ourselves and our families, may we find the true source of rest: Jesus. Seek Him, the source for complete rest for our souls. Rest in Jesus. He offers the answers to your racing mind and worried heart. He calms and brings peace. Jesus is more than a cliché. He is the answer. Seek Him and rest in Him!
Heather Sparks is part of Promise Ministries Church in Kingsport.
