"Take A Rest"

"It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed." Exodus 31:17 

When the children of Israel were in the wilderness for forty years, the Lord fed them every day. For six days every week He would rain down manna, but on the sixth day He would send them twice as much so that they would have it for the sabbath also. "And he said unto them, This is that which the Lord hath said, To morrow is the rest of the holy sabbath unto the Lord: bake that which ye will bake to day, and seethe that ye will seethe; and that which remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the morning." (Exodus 16:23) The Lord had given them the command to observe the sabbath and not do any work on that day. Not only were they to rest, but God Himself "rested" on that day as well- He sent no manna that day. At creation the Lord rested on the seventh day, and now we see Him resting on the seventh day again. "And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made." (Genesis 2:2)

 

A time of rest is important to the Lord, He Himself exhibited an example for us. Am I saying you should not work on the sabbath? Am I saying we should do nothing? The point I am making is that we must have times of rest. We live in a "rat race". We are always so busy. There is always so much to do. If people aren't working (often more than one job), they are involved in something else that consumes their time-- sports, computer, entertainment, etc. (Let me interject here that what I am saying is not a promotion for laziness-- God has instructions and commands concerning that.) But what I am saying is we all need to take some time to "rest". 

 

"..on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed." So many are weary, burned out, depressed, tired and overwhelmed. Why? Because they don't take a moment to rest. Even God Himself took "time off" to "rest", and it says He was "refreshed". Does God get tired? Does He need a nap? Of course not, there is no weariness and weakness in God, but it is a message for us that we need to take a moment to rest and by doing so we will be refreshed. This is the main key to why we are so "tired"-- no rest. You have heard of "burning the candle at both ends"? Many of us are guilty of that. No wonder we aren't as "productive" physically and spiritually as we should be. Even Jesus took time to "rest". He would rest from the crowds that were pressing on Him. He would even get away from His disciples and rest. His rest was found in the quiet place alone with His Father. 

 

When was the last time you took a "rest"? You stopped what you were doing, you shut your eyes for a moment, you turned off the television, backed away from the computer, put your cell phone down and did nothing. When was the last time you stopped everything else and got alone in a quiet place with the Lord? Don't say you can't because you don't have the time to. You are not busier than Jesus. You are not busier than God. The only way you can keep going is by having a time of rest. You need to be refreshed and that comes through rest. Resting in a quiet place alone with Him.

 

Have a great day. Everyone needs a time of rest so that they can get refreshed. 

 

For further reading:

Genesis 2:2,3

Exodus 16:30; 20:11

Matthew 14:23