Eastern District Blog

The Spiritual Practice of Rest

“2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.” -Genesis 2:2-3

Even God needed to rest. It is so easy to get caught up in everything. The text messages, the emails, the work that still needs to be done. Can you imagine what would happen if we didn’t check Twitter for a day?!?!? There is so much that needs to be done and we are constantly surrounded by people that need something from us, but we rarely take time to reflect and just rest with God. If we are too busy getting things done all of the time, we miss the opportunity to spend time with all of God’s blessings.

I know of one pastor who regularly seeks a week of solitude each year to reflect and connect with God. My soul craves that kind of time with God, but at this point in my life a whole week away by myself isn’t realistic. I’d be willing to bet you’d probably agree (if it is, great!). The thing is, you don’t necessarily need a week in a cabin in the woods to let go and rest. You do, however, need some time. I’m not great at this whole resting thing (I own my own business and have 3 side hustles), so I don’t feel qualified to tell you how to do it but let me tell you what I’m going to try. Then you can tell me your plans in the comments.

I am going to plan for myself a day of rest. One day where I don’t have to do any work. Getting ready for the day of rest will take a little prep work. Since I have other people that depend on me that probably also need a day, I will ask them to do my work for the day and I will take over theirs for a later day. Any work I can do ahead of time, I will. I have to make sure I have nothing on the schedule that HAS to be done that day. Clear the schedule. Guys. I’m even going to plan this to be a rest day from the gym. I’m serious here.

I think I am going to plan my day of rest for a Sunday, in part because God says so and in part because that is usually when I have the least on my plate anyway. I plan on sleeping in and eating a good breakfast. Then I’ll go to church with my church family and worship God. After that I’ll probably have lunch with family and then head home to read a book and nap (we all know how good a nap can be for the soul!) After that I’ll take my journal and Bible out into the woods for a bit and read, reflect, meditate, and pray. Finally, I’ll grab a healthy dinner with the family and take a walk. I’ll finish of the night with an at home facial and an early bed time.

To me, this sounds like an awesome day of rest. I don’t have to spend every second of it praying, I just need to make a day to enjoy God and the world he has given to me. It is also important that you are clear with the people around you what your intentions are for the day, so they understand why you are taking that day of rest, so they know to respect your day and not inundate you with other tasks.

I really think that setting a clear day of rest for yourself periodically can be so healthy for you and your relationship with God. Let me know how your day goes, I’ll update you later with mine!