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Rest

Finding Rest in Busy Seasons

When your season of life feels consumed by emails, errands, teaching, texting, leading and loving others well, where in the world does rest fit in your day? You may be thinking, HOW in the world can I possibly find rest in my day? Do you know all the things I have to do? Do you know how many people need me?>

Sheesh! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve struggled with the thought of, the craving for and need to find rest in busy seasons. You may have found yourself looking for rest that can’t seem to be found. It can seem impossible and almost a luxury that someone in your season of life can’t afford. The truth is, not finding rest costs us so much more.

It costs us mentally, emotionally, physically, and as you can imagine, spiritually. The busyness of our day feels like constant withdrawals that can leave us in a deficit but as we invite Jesus into our daily routine, He deposits everything we need. In John 15:4, He tells us to remain in Him.

4 Remain in me, and I in you. Just as a branch is unable to produce fruit by itself unless it remains on the vine, neither can you unless you remain in me. John 15:4 CSB

We must remain in Him…even in our busy seasons. At times, I must admit, I’m tempted to do things apart from Him and in my own strength. Have you been there? At times we forget that He offers us so much more than a completed to do list.

Here are a few things I have found helpful as I practice resting in Him despite the busy seasons of life:

1. Don’t skip time WITH God because you are busy doing things FOR God.

I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without me. John 15:5 CSB

Friend, I know you are busy- busy doing good things and it can be easy to think God needs you in that way. The truth is, He doesn’t need us to “do stuff” for Him; He invites us to BE with Him. Many times, we fill our schedules with fruitful things, but God never intended for us to bear fruit apart from Him.

Remember, God wants time with you, not for you to tirelessly “work” for Him. Being intentional about spending time with God is the most important thing we can do. Take a moment to think of a couple of ways you can shift things in your schedule to ensure you are spending time with God and in His Word. We find true rest for our souls when we spend time with the Creator of our soul.

2. Manage your calendar, don’t let it manage you.

Scheduling time on your calendar for yourself is a game changer! Set aside blocks of time on your calendar daily for rest and resist the urge to skip it. Blocking out as little as 15-20 minutes makes a big difference. Using that time to be still, pray or sit in silence allows you to reset emotionally, mentally, physically, and spiritually. Don’t underestimate the power of setting a time to sit in silence and seek the Lord. As you schedule that time, remember Jesus’ words in Matthew 11:28Come to me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."

3. Avoid “resting” by grabbing your phone and scrolling.

And can we be honest about this? Mindless scrolling isn’t so mindless, our minds are being filled with something, so taking time to fill it with truth is key. Be aware that just because you’re sitting in your comfy clothes on your comfy couch when you scroll, doesn’t mean you’re resting.

As you scroll, your mind is FLOODED with other people’s thoughts, trials, tragedies and triumphs and there is no way, your mind and body are resting as you absorb so much information so quickly. A different way to use your phone is to create and listen to a playlist filled with worship music. The time that you would normally sit and scroll can be replaced with you sitting and listening to worship music.

In addition to the things above, here are a few other tips to help you find rest in the busy seasons.

Tips:

  • Take a nap.

  • Do something fun!!!

  • Go for a walk outside.

  • Take Sabbath seriously.

  • Don’t feel guilty for caring for your soul! ‘

  • Say no to good things, so that you can say yes to God.

  • Drive in silence. It sounds crazy, but it helps reduce the noise in your life.

I’m not perfect at this, but I have learned that finding rest in Him is the only true place of rest. We find ourselves more refreshed, renewed, and ready to do the work He called us to do. You will be better equipped to lead girls well when you care for yourself well. So, from one busy friend to another, lets fiercely protect the valuable gift of rest!