“I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5, ESV)
Maybe the reason that you are waiting on God is that you need rest. God created the earth in six days, and it was on the seventh day that he rested. He created the seventh day as a gift. He created it for us to rest. He did not create us to work 24 hours a day and seven days a week.
But you continue to work. And even when you have time off, you don’t rest. You feel you can’t stop. You feel the constant pressure be doing.
But keep in mind the work is always there. Even if you finish the tasks that you feel are so urgent, there will only be new urgent tasks tomorrow. There is no end to the urgent tasks. The urgency will always be there if you allow it to be there.
One of the most spiritual things we can do is take a nap. Rest is a spiritual discipline. It requires faith that God will complete what we are unable. Starting with rest focuses us on what God will do. Starting with work will put the pressure on us to perform.
Maybe you have heard of the concept of working from rest. That is different from resting from our work. We typically think in terms of resting from our work more than we think about working from our rest.
The best way to rest from our work is to abide in Christ. Jesus says that if you abide in him that you will bear much fruit. A branch cannot grow fruit in itself. The only way to do it is by remaining attached to the vine. Breaking away from the vine to grow the fruit will not work. The branch cannot do anything to make the fruit grow fast. The branch cannot rush the task. Abundance does not come through creating urgency. Abundance comes through living according to God’s rhythm that starts with abiding. And from the abiding comes growth. The most effective and efficient way to experience abundance is remaining still and resting.
Reflection
- Do you honor the Sabbath Day to rest?
- If you do not honor the Sabbath, ask God for forgiveness. Make your rest urgent.
Prayer
Lord, thank you for the gift of rest. Too often I show my lack of faith by violating your Sabbath commandment to rest. But you tell me that abundance comes through abiding. Help me to establish a pattern of rest and to work from my rest. Amen.
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