I’ve got so many things to say about rest, mostly because rest is what I lack most in my life… But after thinking a moment or ten, I now know what I want to write about rest.
GO:
Rest is something that Ava Sophie rarely gets, and when she gets the chance for some, she is not “good at” taking that chance and using the time for rest. She is not the only one with this “challenge”. There are a lot of women out there who can’t rest without getting a guilty conscience. A lot of women, many of them mothers, struggle with all the things they should do, have to do and want to do. Some things are Society’s guidelines(that usually come with way too many expectations attached), some things are the women’s own expectations of themselves: thoughts of how I should be, act and about what I should do, and there are things that these women want to and wish to to, if only they had time. Whatever reason, many women tend to keep going until they fall over because they won’t allow themselves the rest they need. And when that time comes, when they are forced to rest, it usually still isn’t with a clear conscience, and it may often be just enough to get on their feet again, but not enough to really feel their life-energy coming back.
Ava Sophie is one of these women. Her energy doesn’t extend to all the things expected by Society, and definitely not for all the expectations and wishes she has for herself. The result is that every time she has to rest, her body takes longer to get the energy needed to continue with everyday life, or she ends up catching whatever cold is going around(and of course it lasts longer than normal too). The other day, a few sisters in faith, gathered and she discovered that she was not the only one that didn’t feel she met Society’s expectations. She discovered that she wasn’t the only one that struggled with not being able to take a time out without getting a guilty conscience.
One of her sisters in faith talked about the importance of plugging out from the world, and to plug on to your identity in Christ, and then rest. It meant that you lay aside all of your struggles which are caused by the world down, and then plug on to your identity in Christ. In that identity you are loved exactly for the person you are right now, whether you do everything right or everything wrong. Whether you are happy, or not. Whether you are full of energy or not. God loves you for who you are no matter what flaws you think you have. In God’s eyes you are perfect at this exact moment. At the same time as he thinks you are perfect, He also works in you to unleash the potential He has given you in your identity in Christ. How wonderful it is, to rest in knowing that if I just laid around all day, God would still love me just as much! How wonderful it is to rest in the idea that if I stop working on me, God won’t. How wonderful it is to rest in the thought that God sees you as PERFECT, flawless! When you get that sort of rest, it can do miracles to your mind and body, even without any physical rest. Another sister of Ava Sophie sought the Lord for her upcoming exam earlier this week and the Lord gave her this verse to share with Ava Sophie:
23 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; He leadeth me beside the still waters(in my bible it also says: where I can rest). 3 He restoreth my soul; He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.
What it says in these verses are true. You will receive the rest, but to do that you actually have to accept, and allow it to happen! Ava Sophie was given rest and peace, but she couldn’t feel it before she allowed the feeling in. And remember: But seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. Matthew 6: 32-34. ‘All these things’ also include rest, and peace;)
STOP
(This time it only took me 45 min to write this. I’m getting better(and working towards the day when I only use five minutes for these posts).
Linking up with Lisa-Jo Baker every friday(and sometimes a little later…):
avasophie 