Coconut
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- Joined
- Feb 17, 2005
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Get Some Rest
“Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the LORD hath dealt bountifully with thee.”
- Psalms 116:7
I don’t know the reason, but I have slept so good the past two nights and awoke feeling great. You see, I usually am not a sound sleeper and I wake up several times during the night and when the alarm clock goes off at 4:50 a.m. I am one tired puppy.
As I was in prayer this morning, I began to thank the Lord for the good night’s rest I had and how wonderful I felt. Well, you know how Jesus is—He immediately began to speak to my heart about the same issue that most of us have spiritually, a lack of rest.
What do I mean? We allow so many things to build up in our life and we drag them with us throughout the entire day, we try to hide our problems and put on our very best “Christian smile,” but inside we are weary. Stress robs us of sleep, commitments to our job and family keep us running from sunrise to sunset, and we forgot what it means to literally sit at the feet of Jesus and rest. You know how we can get; we are so tired or lack time that we rattle off a bunch of prayer requests and then leave our prayer room without waiting to hear His voice or spend time in His presence.
Why do some Christians struggle with temptation, why do some get knocked off their feet easily when the enemy attacks? According to the Bible, if these things take place, we are in need of some rest. Scripture states “If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small” (Proverbs 24:10).
Jesus walked the earth and saw multitudes of people who were in need of Him. Just like us, they all had a certain amount of stress, some were worried about their next meal, they were concerned with the diseases and sickness that plagued their land, and they were sheep without a Shepherd. Jesus gave them the remedy for their issues and He offers us the same. Jesus said, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls” (Matthew 11:28-29).
Ah, there it is, rest unto your soul. What a difference it makes when we are rested. This morning I felt so much better because I had a good nights rest. My senses were more clear, I did not feel like I was dragging my feet, and I was able to put a real smile on my face as I entered the office building. When we make the time to meet with the Lord in prayer, when we read and meditate upon His word, and when we learn to trust that He is able to carry the weights of every day living better than we can, we will find some much needed rest both physically and spiritually.
Jesus was the only one in the midst of the storm that was able to fall asleep in the back of the boat. He was not concerned with the intimidation of the storm, and He was not threatened by the “What If’s.”
The New Testament states, “And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?” (Mark 4:37-40).
Yes, He was God, but He was also man. His trust was not based on circumstance like ours is so many times. Jesus knew the importance of rest and He teaches us through the written word in hopes that we will have the faith of a child and believe that His promises are for us today.
To the ones who are burnt out with life, Jesus wants you to stop and rest, to those who are dragging the bag of stress and barely making it through the day, Jesus asks you to trust Him and look at things with a new perspective. Life is too short to allow “things” to steal your joy, to change your personality, or ruin your witness. Life happens, life is too busy, and stress will always be present, however, we can handle them all so much better when we have spent time with Jesus and had our strength renewed because we made the decision to rest in Him.
© 2005, Randy Bailey
amen, thank you Jesus!
“Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the LORD hath dealt bountifully with thee.”
- Psalms 116:7
I don’t know the reason, but I have slept so good the past two nights and awoke feeling great. You see, I usually am not a sound sleeper and I wake up several times during the night and when the alarm clock goes off at 4:50 a.m. I am one tired puppy.
As I was in prayer this morning, I began to thank the Lord for the good night’s rest I had and how wonderful I felt. Well, you know how Jesus is—He immediately began to speak to my heart about the same issue that most of us have spiritually, a lack of rest.
What do I mean? We allow so many things to build up in our life and we drag them with us throughout the entire day, we try to hide our problems and put on our very best “Christian smile,” but inside we are weary. Stress robs us of sleep, commitments to our job and family keep us running from sunrise to sunset, and we forgot what it means to literally sit at the feet of Jesus and rest. You know how we can get; we are so tired or lack time that we rattle off a bunch of prayer requests and then leave our prayer room without waiting to hear His voice or spend time in His presence.
Why do some Christians struggle with temptation, why do some get knocked off their feet easily when the enemy attacks? According to the Bible, if these things take place, we are in need of some rest. Scripture states “If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small” (Proverbs 24:10).
Jesus walked the earth and saw multitudes of people who were in need of Him. Just like us, they all had a certain amount of stress, some were worried about their next meal, they were concerned with the diseases and sickness that plagued their land, and they were sheep without a Shepherd. Jesus gave them the remedy for their issues and He offers us the same. Jesus said, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls” (Matthew 11:28-29).
Ah, there it is, rest unto your soul. What a difference it makes when we are rested. This morning I felt so much better because I had a good nights rest. My senses were more clear, I did not feel like I was dragging my feet, and I was able to put a real smile on my face as I entered the office building. When we make the time to meet with the Lord in prayer, when we read and meditate upon His word, and when we learn to trust that He is able to carry the weights of every day living better than we can, we will find some much needed rest both physically and spiritually.
Jesus was the only one in the midst of the storm that was able to fall asleep in the back of the boat. He was not concerned with the intimidation of the storm, and He was not threatened by the “What If’s.”
The New Testament states, “And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?” (Mark 4:37-40).
Yes, He was God, but He was also man. His trust was not based on circumstance like ours is so many times. Jesus knew the importance of rest and He teaches us through the written word in hopes that we will have the faith of a child and believe that His promises are for us today.
To the ones who are burnt out with life, Jesus wants you to stop and rest, to those who are dragging the bag of stress and barely making it through the day, Jesus asks you to trust Him and look at things with a new perspective. Life is too short to allow “things” to steal your joy, to change your personality, or ruin your witness. Life happens, life is too busy, and stress will always be present, however, we can handle them all so much better when we have spent time with Jesus and had our strength renewed because we made the decision to rest in Him.
© 2005, Randy Bailey
amen, thank you Jesus!
