Between our work schedules, school schedules, children’s schedules, church’s schedules, families’ schedules, and friends’ schedules, we have more than enough events to keep us busy. Busyness has become a social norm in today’s society. We feel the need to continue to show up and perform due to our desire to fulfill the social pressures and our lack of boundaries. Unfortunately, we end up showing up emotionally exhausted, physically exhausted, and mentally exhausted; we are merely performing instead of being productive and truly present. Let’s Talk about Rest!
According to Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith, the seven types of rest include physical rest, mental rest, spiritual rest, emotional rest, sensory rest, social rest and creative rest. Physical rest promotes recovery and repair within the body. Mental rest involves declutterring the mind via prayer, meditation, or enjoying hobbies. Spiritual rest involves turning inward to connect with your purpose through religion. Emotional rest includes sitting in and expressing your emotions as well as detaching from emotionally draining situations. Sensory rest involves stimulating your senses via listening to calming music, use of aromatherapy, and spending time in nature. Social rest emphasizes taking time away from social interactions and embracing solidarity. Creative rest involves engaging in activities which ignite creativity and allows for self-expression which can be done via writing, painting, or music therapy.
Since November 2024, the one word that has been repetitive from God to me is “rest”. Considering the types of rest mentioned above, God wasn’t merely telling me to sit down and put my feet up. He was telling me to stop performing according to social pressures. He desired for me to realize that I needed to take a step back from all of the noise and look inward. He desired for me to take care of myself. He desired for me to become more productive instead of just showing up. God desires for our bodies, minds, emotions, senses, and spirits to be in a state of rest. Through our resting, He performs. Through our being still and knowing (Psalm 46:10), He fulfills every word He speaks to us. Through our willingness to take the backseat, He takes control of the “will” and directs us where He desires for us to go. Within the rest, we are exercising our faith while God provides us with peace in the unknown (Philippians 4:7). Within the rest, we are encouraged and allowed to take care of ourselves while God takes care of everything else. Within the rest, God works His will through us via Holy Spirit-led instructions. Friend, resting in Jesus is essential for your next season. You must believe that everything within His will for your life will happen no matter what it looks like, feels like, or sounds like! YOU MUST BELIEVE NO MATTER WHAT! Rest in Jesus, my friend, as He will do exceedingly, abundantly more than you can ask or imagine (Ephesians 3:20)!
I want to encourage you today to stop performing and simply REST for God desires willing, yielding VESSELS not performers (Romans 12:1)!
Read, dissect, and meditate on Ephesians 2: 8-10 (you can’t “work for” anything God has for you), Mark 6:31-32 (take some time for you), Hebrews 4: 9-11 (enter into God’s rest), and Matthew 11:28 (God will give you rest).
Real Talk with Keve 