“You have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless till they find their rest in you.”
St. Augustine of Hippo
With the holidays right around the corner, our hearts may start singing, “Tis the season to be anxious, Fa-la-la-la-la.” I become stressed when the calendar fills up with too many commitments and I plummet into despair when I can’t fulfill my responsibilities.
Some time last summer, my anxiety level climbed to the top of my meter. I can’t even remember what I was apprehensive about; I just knew I was like Martha in the New Testament, whom Jesus said was “worried and concerned about many things.” (Luke 10:41) During this time, God in His kindness spoke these words over me.
Rest. Rest in Me. Lay all your burdens down-whatever is weighing on your heart. Let Me carry them. Remember, nothing is too difficult for Me. In exchange for laying them down, pick up My peace instead. I’ve got this!
My response to God: Because You’ve got this Lord, I can let go. I choose to let go of my worries, concerns, and my responsibility to carry the ball. I’m releasing any preconceived notions of what You want me to be about. I lay down my “selfie” impression. The chalkboard is wiped clean, Lord. You write on it who I am and what You’ve created me for and who You created me to be. I erase in my mind who I’ve been and who I think I am. You alone know who I am. Show me the new me. Clarify how You see me.
When I soak, I let go of my concerns and lay them on the altar for God to take care of them. Knowing God’s got this gives me peace and restores my soul. Trusting in that truth calms the storm within me.
God’s words in Isaiah 30:15 encouraged me when my sixteen month old daughter was hospitalized. “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength.” Rest is a position of trust. Letting go of my worries and resting in God and His sufficiency, shows God I trust Him. Trust, in Isaiah 30:15, has to do with confidence and hope. The Hebrew word for trust “expresses a sense of resignation. In other words, there is nothing more one can do.”
Where in your life today, do you need to hear God’s words of comfort: “I’ve got this!” Is it with your health or a loved one’s illness? Do you need to hear it in regards to your marriage, finances or the spiritual walk of your children or grandchildren? Whatever it might be, I pray you will trust God, so that you will be in perfect peace and have a steadfast mind. (Isaiah 26:3)
Let the holidays come! Even though I may not be ready for them, I know God is and He will provide what I need. After all, He’s got this!
“Anything that disturbs our rest in Him must be rectified at once, and it is not rectified by being ignored but only by coming to Jesus Christ.”
Oswald Chambers
Relevant Reflections:
1. What is disturbing your rest in God today?
2. How can you show God that you trust He’s got this?