There’s a song that says
‘Hush little baby, don’t you cry.
You know, your mama was born to die
all my trials Lord, will soon be over.’

The song is burdensome and the people involved could do with a respite. As I read Hebrews 4: 1-10, the writer says we receive the same promises as the people in the wilderness. These include the promise of rest. The writer says the ‘wilderness people’ did not experience this promise because they did not have faith. It reminds us that God rested on the seventh day having completed his work. The writer says it is written elsewhere that they will never be able to rest because they were disobedient.

God keeps renewing the promise. and so, we too have that same promise of rest. God as the Message paraphrase indicates, resets the promise to Today. I think about sabbath rest. The line in the hymn speaks about sabbath rest by Galilee. It stills the heats of our desire. I recognize that rest comes in different forms.

Rest is physical but, not just physical. Rest is peace of mind. Rest is laying aside the burdens that beset us. Rest is the ability to move on. It allows us to begin again and start over. This only comes if we understand that we have this promise of today. This understanding allows us to be able to reset and restart.

Life can be thought of as a cycle of seasons. It is a cycle of beginnings and endings. We understand that this is continuous. It is not discreet endings and discreet beginnings. You may be beginning something in one area of your life. In another area, you’re in the middle of completing a task. Still, in another area, you are towards the end of a particular season. This business of rest becomes important because of the tensions and the complexities of life. Rest also becomes a brief period we must take from the busyness of life. We do this to rejuvenate. We recalibrate and reorder ourselves. It is a time of refreshment. Sometimes rest is not stillness. It may be a different kind of work that energizes you. You are then able to go back to the task at hand with restored energy.

Rest is a divine gift. Like most other things, God provides for our wellbeing. We should not just take the gift but recognize it as coming from God. We should accept it graciously and honour it as sacred. The world could have been ordered differently. It is for us to take the time, trusting God that by resting we are not losing out. Very often, we do not do things that we ought to do, because there is not enough time. We prioritize paid work. We focus on how we are seen by others rather than on what really matters. What really matters is our relationship with God and those who love us and who we also love. By taking the time to enjoy these relationships, we are not being frivolous. They give us the impetus to go on. Many times, just to ensure the wellbeing of those we love, we do things that make us uncomfortable.

Resting means, we do not carry our burdens all the time. We lay them down long enough to gather insight in new ways, courage and strength to pick them up again.

People rest in different ways: power naps, afternoon naps, a long bath and a glass of wine. Others rest by listening to music or reading a book. Some prefer doing crossword puzzles or gardening. It’s generally about doing something you enjoy.
In Psalm 23, the psalmist says God refreshes our soul. God ensures that the most essential part of us is taken care of.

Rest allows us to see the beauty in our lives and the blessings that surround us, even in the midst of trials. Resting gives us a profound sense of peace and contentment.

One writer suggest we can keep a Gratitude Journal as we rest. Journalling is a practice that can be done daily. It can be as simple as keeping a gratitude journal, where we jot down things we are thankful for each day, or taking a moment to express our appreciation for something. It helps us keep our head above waters in hard time.

Rest then is a spiritual practice that rejuvenates our bodies our minds and our souls. God gave it to us. We should honour this practice of reset, refresh, and reconnect as sacred. It is a holy conversation to which we are called. We sustain it with God’s grace and mercy. We do it everyday, whether we like it or not. because of its sacredness and how it feels once we do it.

“May the power of God preserve us. May the wisdom of God instruct us. May the hand of God protect us. May the way of God direct us. May the shield of God defend us. May the host of God guard us against the snares of evil and the temptations of the world. May Christ be with us, Christ before us, Christ in us, Christ over us. May your Salvation, 0 Lord, be always ours this day and for evermore.” We remember that all is well all will be well all manner of things will be well.