We were made in the image of God...to rest!

Wrexham FC recently got promoted to the EFL for the first time in 15 years, and part of that is down to the recovery plan they have put in place. For the last few weeks of the season, at considerable cost, they hired a cryochamber – basically an incredibly cold box players go in for a few minutes – to help aid post-match recovery during the intense season they were facing. How much it contributed to their promotion is debatable, but the pursuit of marginal gains in recovery is interesting.

Sport, over the last few years, has become obsessed with rest and recovery. Some Premier League clubs travel to away games with bespoke mattresses for players to sleep, beds have been placed in training grounds, and there is a vast industry of influencers and companies marketing recovery-based products.

In this way, sport is itself imaging the world God made. In Genesis, we see work and rest are directly linked as we see God himself rest.

“By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.”

The first story in the Bible starts with God working and ends with him resting.

When we stop and think about this, it is mind-blowing. God rested. The God who doesn’t need sleep or holidays or any form of recovery plan. He doesn’t get tired or weak or need days off, stopped at the end of his work of creation, and rested.

It is thus a simple observation – as those made in the image of God – we are also to rest.

We are told that God stopped on the seventh day, rested and blessed that day, and made it holy.

Genesis 2 is not all the Bible has to say about rest, however.

In Matthew 11:29, Jesus tells us that true rest is now found in Him, and Hebrews 4 reminds us of the spiritual rest available now, which Christ’s death and resurrection provided. There is a wonderful promise here that we will only truly and fully rest with Christ.

So rest is not just stopping work, as it was in Genesis 2; it is also a time to focus on God and to re-orientate ourselves back to Him.

When God rested, it wasn’t because he was tired. It was God stopping and enjoying the work he had done.

So, a weekly rhythm for us as sportspeople should involve enjoying a day where we stop and celebrate. Not just recovery from our knocks and mental refreshment from the pressure of sport, but a day to stop and give thanks for all we have and ultimately to enjoy the God who has given us these gifts.

So what?

As well as being made to worship, we were made to do life with others (as we’ve seen) and live life in community. Church is integral for the sportsperson. However, for some sportspeople, just like for those in other vocations like doctors or emergency service workers, it is not always possible for their day of rest to align with a Sunday every week.

If that’s the case, chat with your church leaders and work out how to keep meeting with others and resting well amid your sporting rhythm. The devil does not want us to meet with others, knowing that this encourages us in our faith. So, we have got to keep making gathering with other Christians a top priority.

But also remember that rest itself can be worship. As we’ve seen, all of our lives can be lived for the glory of God. You can rest to the glory of God as you enjoy the world as he intended it to be, giving thanks to him for the good gifts he has given. For some, as you live in his image and have a deliberate day of rest, this could involve you playing sports, and for others it may mean a rest from sport.

So today, as you think about competing, how will you think about a proper day of rest within your weekly rhythm? A day to enjoy God and enjoy the world he has made, resting from the regular pattern of your work, whether sporting or not?

God blesses our rest. He makes it holy. Will you rest in him deliberately this week?

Prayer

Dear Lord,

Thank you for the gift of rest. We recognise we are not you, we are made in your image, and our bodies need rest and recovery. Help us to remember this!

Help us to prioritise rest and to enjoy it and enjoy you and your good gifts as we do. Thank you for our churches and the wonderful gift they are to us. How they encourage us and help us to rest in and enjoy you,

Amen.

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