TODAY’S SIGNATURE VERSE ••• Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while. (Mark 6:31b ESV)
PRAISE & PRAYER PROMPT ••• I don’t like naps. I wake up feeling weirdly disoriented and usually worse than I did pre-nap. So I don’t take them very often. It doesn’t mean I don’t need them from time to time, but I will fight against them like a stubborn three-year-old. (Thank goodness for coffee.)
I am sure that many of you wonder, “What is wrong with that girl?!” Trust me, I’ve been asked and have received more than my fair share of incredulous looks when my disdain for napping is revealed. But all of you pro-nappers will be delighted to know that Jesus also took naps. In the story of Jesus calming a storm, Jesus was in a boat taking a nap (Luke 8:22-25).
I speak of napping, but the point of today’s post is really about rest. We all need it, but sometimes, it’s hard to find it. We speak of finding a work-life balance, but those scales are rarely (if ever) perfectly balanced.
Right before He fed the 5000, Jesus told the disciples, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.” (Mark 6:31b ESV). Part C of the verse explains, “For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat.” These guys were busy and the opportunity for rest was in short supply because everywhere they went, crowds gathered to see Jesus!
We resist rest, but Jesus offers it to us and encourages us to take it. It doesn’t have to necessarily be a nap… but simply turning around from the work, taking a deep breath, and offering a prayer to God will give us a much needed moment of rest! Savoring a moment with our Savior rejuvenates us. He understands when we are tired. We have permission to be so. But He also offers us rest.
Today, as you pray, thank Jesus for His encouragement to rest. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you focus on Him and seek Him for strength, endurance, and even rest.
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