Choose rest or have it chosen for you

Jul 8, 2013Family Uncaged, Find joy today

rest

On a run toward the tail end while I huffed my way through a park and felt the sweat drip down my forehead, I chatted with God. The subject? A frenetic, crazy-busy life. It amazes me how deliberate I’ve been about paring down my life. And yet, even so, I find myself back in the place of utter busyness.

The Lord got my attention the way He often does–with bunnies. When I run, I almost always see a bunny hopping across my path. Often they hop in groups of three, reminding me to pray for my three children. This morning, it was The Lone Bunny who cocked its head my way, then hopped along.

My youngest daughter’s nickname is Bunny. And I’ve been engaging with her, but not enough lately. So when the bunny looked at me, I prayed for Julia, and prayed I’d be present for her.

“I need to rest,” I told the Lord. “I can’t seem to stop working.” A true statement, that. I work well into the night. I need to stop.

“Yes,” He whispered. “Either you choose, or I will choose for you.”

I remembered the first month we spent in France as missionaries, how much we slept. Culture shock overwhelmed our bodies so much that we all slept 12 hours most nights. Way too much overload to handle. I sense I’m in that place again with too much overload, yet I’m pushing against leisure. And I know well enough about my own limitations that if I don’t choose to stop work at the end of my work day, my body will stop functioning well.

Either I choose rest, or rest will come in other ways.

So here are my questions for you:

  1. When has God chosen rest for you? What happened?
  2. How have you deliberately chosen to rest or slow down?
  3. Can you recall a time in  your life that felt balanced, yet blessedly full with oodles of energy?

I look forward to your responses. I need them!

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