All Is Calm: Receiving Jesus' Rest This Christmas Sýnishorn

Day Five: Trust His Faithfulness: 

“Do you trust Me?”

That question confronts us daily, from the moment we wake up to the moment we go to sleep. Because to trust means to rest, and to rest means to trust.

Think about it: You wouldn’t anchor your Christmas tree in a stand that’s missing a leg, and you wouldn’t ask someone who’s always late to bring the hors d’oeuvres for the Christmas party . 

Whether we realize it or not, we’re constantly evaluating the trustworthiness of the things and people around us. We do the same thing in our relationship with God, subtly negotiating just how much we’ll entrust to Him. 

Whether it’s our finances, broken relationships, hidden hurts, or future dreams, we evaluate God’s faithfulness in the past to determine whether or not we can trust Him in our present. 

But it’s in the midst of this holiday busyness that our trust or mistrust becomes most evident. 

…We’ll stuff ourselves with cookies, pies, and holiday hams if we don’t trust Jesus to be the Bread of Life who satisfies our deepest desires.

…We’ll worry about our prodigal child if we don’t trust Jesus to be the Good Shepherd who brings lost sheep home. 

…We’ll wallow in loneliness, feeling forgotten, if we don’t trust Jesus to be Immanuel, the God who dwells with us even when we’re alone. 

…We’ll hustle to create the perfect Christmas if we don’t trust Jesus to be the Holy One of God who makes us perfect. 

Each moment is a new opportunity to trust God’s faithfulness in a million little ways, and it all starts with learning to rest. 

What if instead of rushing headlong into our busy days, we started each morning with the simple practice of resting? Let us, as the psalmist does, instruct our souls to find rest in Him alone: to remember His works and His goodness, to express our desperate need for Him, to still our minds and hearts in His presence, and to declare our confidence in His trustworthiness.

Because the One who spoke the world into existence yet came as a helpless babe that holy, blissful, silent night, can speak calm and peace into our own lives today. 

Reflection Questions: Which of Jesus’ names speak to you and the specific challenges you’re facing in your own life? What does it look like to trust and rest in God this Christmas season? What would you do differently? 

Want More? Download the Unwrapping the Names of Jesus bundle and receive a Names o f Jesus prayer journal, Rest prayer bookmark, and a printable Prayer for Christmas Rest.