Real Rest.
Freely and Lightly series, #7.
“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”
~ Matthew 11:28-30 msg
Today I worked harder physically than I have in a long time, in our rental properties of course: I set up two new TVs. I used a ladder to clean the fan on a vaulted ceiling. I cleaned an oven, inside and out…and moved the old oven to the barn. I caulked a shower, handle, and spout. I pulled three window A/C units out of their windows for winter storage. I replaced light bulbs. And you know what? It felt great. It was the epitome of “good tired.” It was the opposite of yesterday.
Yesterday I worked hard too. I moved one of those ovens from one house to another. I ran some errands. I made a pot of chili. And I spent the rest of the day at my desk on my computer. It was productive enough, but instead of feeling the satisfaction of work well done, I felt scattered and anxious, wondering what I was missing and trying to keep track of everything in my head. (Typical 6-stuff for you Enneaphiles.)
One day I worked hard physically, but rested internally. The other day I worked less hard physically but stewed and churned inside all day. One day captured the essence of “Freely & Lightly” while earlier day, that vision was a dim memory. Life is like that, and I’m not beating myself up for it. Yet my hunger is strong to live more consistently in the rest of God!
Jesus knew that this is a challenge for us; that’s why his invitation welcomes us like a cup of hot chocolate on a cold day: Are you spinning your wheels? Chasing tasks but catching none? Come to me. I’ll show you how to enter into my world where work is restful…and rest works. (That’s my version of this beautiful passage.) Are you in? Do you want Jesus to “show you how to take a real rest”? Me too.
This is good, but this is the micro view. Now let’s take a look at the macro view…
My colleague Janet Hagberg breaks the spiritual journey into six “stages of faith,” and these make a lot of sense to me. We quickly progress through Stage 1 (relief) and Stage 2 (forgiveness) and then land in Stage 3 (empowerment) and Stage 4 (faithfulness). And this is where many of us spend the rest of our lives, serving joyfully and faithfully…and sometimes exhaustingly. This is where we are in the world for God, but we haven’t yet learned how to be in God for the world (thanks to Robert Mulholland for that probing turn of phrase).
Hagberg says that we stay in Stage 4 until we hit “the Wall.” Perhaps someone lets us down and we become disillusioned with the community or its leaders. Perhaps we enter into a season of deconstruction or questioning. Or perhaps we’re simply worn out from serving others to our own neglect. We can spend days, months, or years at the Wall, but there’s no moving forward until we go through the crisis and find God in a new way on the other side. This breakthrough invites us into Stage 5 (acceptance) and Stage 6 (grace). Oh, we think we understand grace at Stage 1, but grace is a mystery that reveals itself progressively and profoundly…until all of life is grace!
I think that’s why the author of Hebrews challenges us so strongly, “Since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it…. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest” (Heb 4:1, 11). This passage implies that we can enter rest initially and conceptually, but then simply step back into a life of striving and straining. And we’ll usually stay there until we wear ourselves out and collapse back into grace.
The call of the Spirit, then, is to recognize ever more quickly when we have stepped outside of the Real Rest—and then return. Ever so gently. Ever so graciously with ourselves. Ever so hopefully. “I’ll show you how,” Jesus says. Indeed, Teacher, guide our souls into the rest we long for!
grow your soul
If you haven’t tried it before, try the Welcome Prayer as a way of re-entering the rest of God. If you have tried it before, this is a great time to renew your surrender to the grace of God.
serve the world
Who do you know who needs a shot of rest? What can you do to give it to you? Invite them for a meal… Take them a meal… Babysit their kids so they can go a date night… Give them an encouraging phone call or text… Send them a small present in the mail… Send them one of my favorite books, The Rest of God… Pray for them…
takeaway
Rest is God’s idea.