I need a vacation!

It feels as though people today are on an endless search for rest. The cries for another vacation and a chance for a break play on repeat from those around me. Though what time has taught me lately is no matter how many vacations I take, no matter how many times I get my nails done, binge-watch another TV show, or spend hours scrolling my phone, I am left feeling the same, unsatisfied, and still in need of restorative rest. And yet when I cling to these unfulfilling types of rest I return to them as a result of feeling unrested in hopes of an altered ending to this vicious cycle in desperate search for a break. 

And yet the irony is, all throughout scripture the Lord reminds us to rest! The Lord consistently expressed that we are not equipped and should not take the burdens of this world upon ourselves. God knows your burdens, heartbreak, and the discouragement you are facing. Repeatedly his patient and steady character is always calling us back to real reprieve and rest in Him. 

Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. 29Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”

TikTok, TV commercials, and modern messages push the motif that individuals are working too hard today and need to take more breaks. I think we need to make the distinction between rest and laziness. And well I do not deny the reality of burnout and the various challenges individuals face in their day-to-day lives and workplaces, the way we approach rest may need some more attention and reconsideration. 

While vacations, naps, and the several other forms of rest we partake in can be beneficial for us, I believe that when we do not make the center of such rest about the one who has gifted it to us, we fall short.  No amount of “self-care” days will ever be enough. God has made us with a yearning for Him, whether you know it or not. Without God, we will never truly feel satisfied because what we are really in search of and the rest we truly need can only be found in Him. The Lord gifts us rest, it is a gift to us from our gracious Father. Let us seek Him for true satisfaction and restoration. 

Prayer

Lord, thank you for being a source of rest in this crazy world! Thank you, Lord, for not only giving us a day dedicated to rest but also giving us constant access to you, the one who always provides it. Lord, I pray that we may turn to you first, as our source of rest and that you will provide us with the restoration and motivation to carry out each day. It’s in your heavenly name I pray. Amen