Making Time To RestSample

Fill Up To Pour Out.

Being filled with the Spirit is simply this — having my whole nature yielded to His power. When the soul is yielded to the Holy Spirit, God Himself will fill it. — Andrew Murray

The reason we need rest is because we have been working or exerting energy in some way. And just because we learn how to rest and may feel rested, doesn’t mean we will stay that way. 

We will work again. 
We will help others again. 
We will be emotionally drained again. 

Getting rest for the sake of rest is not the whole point. We rest and get rest so that we can work again. There is a beautiful ebb and flow of working and resting; of being filled up so that we can pour out. 

As we’ve discussed, meditating on God’s Word, journaling, and disconnecting from things that distract us are practices that fill us back up. We find rest as we do these daily. Just like our physical bodies need ample hours each night to recover, our spirits do as well. We can’t expect to have strong, vibrant spirits without investing in them. We can’t think that one week of vacation will carry us through for months and months. We must make daily deposits in our rest bucket to endure. And we have to be paying attention when too many withdrawals have been made.

In his book, Leading on Empty: Refilling Your Tank and Refueling Your Passion, author and pastor Wayne Cordeiro tells about a dream he had. A woman approached a farmer at his farm and asked him for something he didn’t have. He said, "Come back tomorrow, and I'll have more." She was upset but it didn’t bother him. He just kept working. People came to his farm everyday and when he was out of eggs or milk, he would simply say, "Come back tomorrow, and I'll have more." Pastor Cordeiro shared this newfound view he had after the dream:

I don't have to tie myself to an imaginary, unrelenting cycle to produce more, make more or try to outdo last week's numbers. I have just so much time in the day, and I want to do what I can with all my heart involved. When the clock runs out, then I’ll say, "Come back tomorrow, and I'll have more.”

We wake up each day with a certain amount of mental, emotional, and physical energy. When we have poured out everything we have to give, we must rest. When we are in this empty state, there is less of us to get in the way of His work in our lives. 

Lean in, be still, and rest. This is the most opportune and appropriate time to be filled up with God’s Spirit. 

Reflect

• Do you feel that you have to meet every need that you see?
• What is something you can incorporate into your day to feel refueled?
• Write down any revelation that God speaks to you through today’s Bible reading or devotional.