Come and rest

I've been home for a week and a half now, and I have been going nonstop! It seems that if there is somewhere to be, I have to be there. If there is someone to talk to, I have to talk to them. This doesn't seem like a problem, until I hit wall. That wall is called exhaustion.

Yesterday, I was so tired and discouraged. All I wanted to do was lay in bed all day. So I did.... I even put off doing my quiet time until later in the day. And in His usual "I'm gonna rock your world" fashion, God showed up! I read in Mark and this is the verse that stuck out to me:

Mark 6:31 ... 'Then Jesus said" Let's go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile."

In another version, it says " Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest." We usually miss this verse because it's right before Jesus feeds the five thousand, and we are focused on the BIG miracle Jesus does. But this really stuck out to me. There I was tired and running on almost empty and Jesus is saying "Hey let's spend sometime together! Rest in me. There is this quiet place I want to take you to."

All I had to do was stop for a second and see that He is constantly calling us to go away with Him. To give Him our burdens, cares, and worries. But we resist this. We hold back, because we have "do it ourselves" mentality. We want to be independent, and self sufficient. Our society tells us we need to have it all figured out, the next steps mapped out, and all the answers to the big questions like "What are you plans now?"

That is not how God wants us to live. That is not why He sent his son to this earth.  Isaiah had a lot to say about God's power and his rest for the weary. But this passage really stuck out to me....

' He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless. Even youths will become weak and tired, and young men will fall into exhaustion. But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not faint.' ~ Isaiah 40:29-31

I know we've all heard verse 31.... We've heard it in sermons, commencement ceremonies, funerals, devotionals... The list goes on. And I think I may have already used it in a blog posting.... But when we really dive into it, really look at what the context of the verse is saying, there is a whole new world opened to us.

Basically, God is saying, regardless of your age, your stature in life, and no matter where you live, you will get tired.... You will be weak, you will be so exhausted that you won't want to get out of bed. But Trust me for everything!! Wait upon my timing, allow my grace to be sufficient, allow my words to give you hope. Come away with me to a quiet place and rest. Oh Man!! WOW!! Here it is. God is giving us permission to say "I don't know" to the questions about our plans and future. He's giving us an out.

So friends, I don't know where you're at, I don't know what has you tired and worn out, but rest in Christ. Find that quiet place for the two of you and simply rest. Listen to his gentle voice. The one that calls you His beloved, and be strengthened and renewed by it!