1 Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. 2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. (Gen. 2:1-3 NIV)
Woven into the fabric of creation is rest. There are perhaps no more two surprising words than “he rested.” God rested! Not because he was tired. The psalmist declares that God never wears out. He can work 24/7 (Ps. 121). God rested because in order to model a life of serenity over stress. God’s rest on the seventh day became the basis for the Sabbath (Ex. 20). A day on which God’s people were to rest, to trust that the world would keep spinning without them, because God held it safely in his hands. God rested. And he still invites us to rest as well. To trust that everything’s going to be fine if we take our hands off the wheel for a moment, catch our breath, prop our feet up, and pause. God rested. Won’t you?
Prayer: Thank you God, for modeling the importance of rest and renewal. Thank you for inviting me to experience the same. Help me to never believe that I am so indispensable that the world can’t get by without me. Help me to stop and rest.”
Action step: Plan a few moments today to pause. Plan an hour this week to play. Plan a day this month to reconnect with God and with others.
