Why Rest?

Work six days and rest the seventh. Stop working even during plowing and harvesting.
Exodus 34:21 (The Message)

For six days work is to be done, but the seventh day shall be your holy day, a Sabbath of rest to the Lord. Whoever does any work on it must be put to death.
Exodus 35:2 (NIV)

I think that God was serious about this “rest” thing. It seems that regular periods of rest were not a polite suggestion, but a command instead! When I am talking to my kids, I will often say things like, “Would you mind collecting all of the trash cans?” or “Could you please feed the dogs?” But when I want them to know that I really mean business, I don’t waste time making requests of them. Instead, I will say, “Get your homework done, now!” or “Stop yelling in the house!” There is a definite difference in my tone of voice and the words that I use. My kids know that they are to obey my requests, but they don’t even hesitate when I use a command!

I find it interesting that God anticipated the excuses that the Israelites would use to avoid these periods of rest. “But God, the crops have to be harvested today or we will lose them.” God says, “No excuses! Do what I say, no matter what!” We still use the same excuses today. “I can’t slow down or I will get behind.” “After this busy season, I will take a break.” “When things slow down and I get my life in order, I will take a vacation.” Same old excuse - but God has the same answer. Stop and Rest - no matter what.

In my story, The Still Place, from my first “Cup of Encouragement” Book, I talked about a reason why I tend to avoid stopping and resting. “To give up all of the rushing and the momentum, to be quiet and still, is to give up control.” My husband, Jerry, often uses the picture of someone who hits their thumb with a hammer. The first instinct is to shake the hand. The movement of shaking numbs the nerves and keeps the pain at bay. Once the shaking stops, the pain sets in. In life, we keep moving in order to delay the pain. If we stop, we must face whatever is going on in our hearts. By continuing in our busyness, we think we are controlling our emotions, but what we are really doing is simply delaying the pain.

I once heard a pastor say that we sometimes “outrun our soul.” My soul will not function at a hundred miles per hour. Even if I manage to keep my body moving at that pace for a long period of time, eventually the weariness of my soul will be made known. How then can my soul catch up?

This is what the Lord says: “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.’”
Jeremiah 6:16