RestSample

Rest and Control

When we hear the phrase, “things are out of control” it doesn’t fill us with a sense of peace, calmness and rest. Usually, something’s gone wrong. Our remedy is to get things back under control and chaos is averted. Many of us subconsciously know that control is a good thing. If we can either gain control, or maintain control, we can, to some extent, ensure things will be good for us and those around us. And of course, control is good in measure. We want control over our spending, our ability to drive a car, our responsibility to lead a team or respond rather than react.

However, it naturally creates an opposite mindset. Letting go of control = bad. And here lies the issue. Because to rest, we have to let go. We have to stop. And if we’ve created a world around us that is dependent upon our ability to keep control, then we won’t rest. At least not until we’re forced to rest and that, ironically, doesn’t portray someone who is showing self-control. Because self-control isn’t always restraining ourselves from things we shouldn’t do. It’s actively doing the things that we should do. Like rest.

The fact is, none of us, who have a relationship with God, should fear letting go. He’s in control and that’s what counts. We aren’t letting go and letting it fall apart. We’re letting it go to God. For most of us, it’s probably not that we don’t trust God, but we’re just not used to actively letting go and giving it to Him. Just remember, there’s Someone way better at being in control than you are.

For some of us, we don’t rest because we feel a need to constantly be doing. We either fear what happens when we do rest, or we enjoy working so much that we don’t choose to rest. If you’re the former, then trust in God once again. He’s in control. He can be trusted. Enjoy the blessings of rest in His presence. If you’re the latter, it’s brilliant that you love working so much! Praise God that you do something you love. But don’t let His gifts cause you to neglect His instructions to practice self-control. Choose the discipline of rest, even when you just want to keep going. If the Creator of the Universe chose to rest, and He definitely could have kept going, then be wise and follow His ways.

It’s exhausting to maintain control and your body will end up telling you that. Why not practice rest on a regular basis so you don’t have to get to this stage. If you’ve forgotten about the beauty of rest, I would encourage you to re-read yesterday’s devotional.

What areas in your life can you begin to let go of and practice rest? Your business or work? A person? A hobby? A goal? House jobs?

Tomorrow we will look at Rest & Awareness.