Rest | BCL Monthly

Happy July to our BCL readers!

Rest is something we all enjoy, but it often seems in short supply! What is rest, how much rest is enough, and why does rest seem so elusive?

In this month’s newsletter, Le Ann shares why we need to take time to rest, even when it seems like something good won’t get done unless we do it ourselves. Ayrian explains why every Christian is promised rest by God and what that promise means for us right now. Dan shares why, even though our days on this earth are filled with turmoil, we still have an everlasting rest that is safe and secure.

To God alone be the glory!

In Christ,
Le Ann Trees, Managing Editor
Dan Rowlands, Content Editor
Ayrian Yasar, Associate Editor

It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep. (Ps. 127:2)

One thing that stands out in my mind from my children’s days playing youth sports was how no one person was indispensable. If a starter got injured or was sick or was out of town, there was always someone on the team who could fill that spot on the field. Sometimes the team didn’t do as well with the substitute player, and sometimes the team did better. For people who struggle with overcommitting themselves, it’s good to remember that God will find a way to accomplish his purposes.

When Moses died, Joshua took over in leading God’s people (Deut. 31:23). When the prophet Elijah was taken up to heaven, God brought the prophet Elisha onto the scene (2 Kings 2:9-15). The work Moses and Elijah did was important, but it wasn’t all up to them to accomplish all of God’s purposes.

We can always think of something we need to be doing instead of resting. Even when we lie down, our minds may keep running, preventing us from taking the time to replenish our bodies according to God’s good design.

After 60 years of experiencing life here on earth, I feel like the pace keeps getting faster, not slower. Technology has made things easier in countless ways, while also making us feel empowered to do more and more because we can. Yet, is doing so wise? The answer to this question will be unique for each of us; our paths will be similar in some ways to those of our brothers and sisters in Christ, while different in other ways.

We all have limitations because as human beings we are all finite. We can push ourselves to do more and more, but we may end up doing unnecessary things and perhaps even things that cause harm in the long run. More is not always better.

Jesus took time to rest and pray, although he could have spent that time healing people and teaching. He also told his disciples to rest (Mark 6:31). Taking time to rest is a practical way we can follow our Lord’s example in everyday life.

Getting too little rest makes us grumpy, short-tempered, and even a safety hazard to others as well as ourselves. When we neglect resting sufficiently over significant periods of time, our health usually suffers from it. Due to circumstances beyond our control, we can’t always get the rest we need, but we should try the best we can to take time to relax and be refreshed.

You are precious to God, dear saint. Your noble work in all your callings honors God and your neighbor, and diligence is a godly attribute. Yet, it is important to recognize our limitations and trust that God will make all things beautiful in his time, not ours (Eccles. 3:11). Rest in the truth that your heavenly Father is always faithful and he is watching over you with unfathomable love in all you do, including your sleep!

For whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. (Heb. 4:10-11)

We all have days that are very full: making meals for the family, working long hours at the office, taking kids to activities, helping kids with schoolwork (or schooling them at home), caring for aged parents, tending to an adult sibling with special needs, caring for an ailing friend, etc. There seems to be an endless number of things needing to be done. Often the word “rest” doesn’t seem to find much place in our lives—we snatch a few hours of sleep, try to go on a quick run, or just sit for a moment.

There are some seasons in our lives where it is difficult to take a break; yet, every Christian is promised rest by God. As we keep our eyes on that promised rest, it helps us bear with patience the times in our lives that are full of bustle.

While our lives may be full of constant work, there is one type of work Christians don’t have to do. We cannot work to earn our own righteousness, since Christ has earned our salvation through his own work. By faith we can enter the rest of God, knowing that we are secure in his care and love, and wait for that final day of the fulfillment of rest in the new heavens and the new earth.

Keeping our sights on this future rest, which we already have a taste of by faith, sustains us each and every day in our pilgrimage in this world and shapes our actions:

But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace. (2 Pet. 3:13-14)

As we seek to fulfill our many responsibilities, we must endeavor to do so in a way that pleases the Lord (showing patience, kindness, goodness, etc.) with the knowledge that we are at peace with God. With this mindset we can go through even the busiest days resting in both the work of Christ on our behalf and the promise of a glorious future with our God.

Our concept of rest is varied and broad. Is it sleep or a long midday nap? Is it stopping work or exercise, taking a break from our normal exertions of life? Or is it ultimate, a resting from all the strivings, turmoil, and cycles of this life?

Surely we can all agree that rest is desirable and necessary. Rest is necessary for any living being in this creation because we were not made to do constant work. Our bodies simply cannot go on forever. Rest is also desirable since it gives us a chance to recharge and to enjoy the fruits of our work.

Rest gives us a chance to think and take to heart things that too often spin around in our minds like small, unsettling storms. Rest is peaceful. It is, as the prophet Isaiah wrote, “peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places” (Isa. 32:18).

The question is, from where does this peacefulness come, and is it possible to even get there when there is so much trouble all around us? In the Netflix series Maid, Sharon Van Etten’s “Every Time the Sun Comes Up I’m in Trouble” hauntingly plays in the background as the main character Alex faces yet another setback, another obstacle, another challenge, another tragedy. Every day brings trouble and there seems to be no rest.

No doubt we can all identify with Alex, not necessarily to the same extent, but it is a rare person who has not had days of turmoil—days when we cry out for respite and a break from our troubles.

Isaiah gives us hope. The pouring out of God’s Spirit will bring the restful peace we all long for (Isa. 32:15) as a result of righteousness (Isa. 32:17). And its effect? Calm and confidence, peaceful homes and places of rest (Isa. 32:17-18). The righteousness will come by means of the only perfectly righteous person to walk the earth, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, the Messiah who suffered and died on behalf of God’s people, completing his work on earth.

Jesus’ resurrection from the dead and ascension into heaven leads to the pouring out of his Spirit to all who are united to Christ Jesus by faith. This pouring out brings rest—rest from our own weak and failing works as we try to save ourselves. It brings rest from the enmity and division between God and humanity and between one another, reconciling us to God and to each other with the love of God given so that we may love others.

This is true rest. It is an everlasting rest that is safe and secure and untroubled as we look forward to our peaceful heavenly home, securely dwelling in righteousness with God forever.

Editor’s note: This newsletter is adapted from Beautiful Christian Life’s March 2022 newsletter, “Rest.”

Do you have trouble sleeping? Paradoxically, the busier life gets, the more tired we are and yet the harder it is to get good rest! We don’t have time for it, or when we finally do lay our heads down at night there are so many things racing around in our minds that we can’t fall asleep. Work is meant to be fulfilling, but ever since the fall it can often be tiresome; or as Psalm 127 puts it, it can feel like “toil.”

We burn the candle on both ends, and we end up being burnt out because of it. Read more...

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