14 Days of Strength in Any StruggleSample

An Urgent Invitation to Rest by Grace P. Cho

I watched the cursor blink in the same spot, telling me I was wasting my time. Stubbornly forcing myself to sit at my desk hadn’t helped move the work along. Through the window, I heard the kids call me again to watch them do cartwheels on the front lawn. I wanted to relish the last days of summer with them, but I was being pulled by the stern demands of deadlines.

I clicked through the many open tabs on my computer to find something that would require minimal thinking, but every task and project was at the point where they needed my focused attention. I closed my eyes, closed the laptop, took some deep breaths, and surrendered.

I leaned back in my chair, resigned and frustrated at my inability to push through. But then I sensed a different pull in my heart—an urgent invitation to rest.

Up until now, rest seemed like a luxury I couldn’t afford. I’d started to believe that the mark of a generous, loving person was to give until I had nothing left. It was an unhealthy belief that I had grown up with—that being like Jesus meant martyring ourselves at the altar of service to others.

But we aren’t robots created for incessant work, nor are we the saviors of the world. Rest is essential. We must rest so we can keep going. We must rest because we have limits and because we can trust God with all that needs to get done.

The lie that I was only as valuable as what I produced enticed me to open my laptop again and keep pushing through, but I decided to heed the warning to rest. I walked outside into the sun’s embrace and watched with delight as my kids showed off their cartwheel moves. I sat on the front step and felt my body exhale.

We aren’t meant to carry the world on our own shoulders. God’s inviting you to rest. Surrender, exhale, and let Him love you.

It is useless for you to work so hard from early morning until late at night, anxiously working for food to eat, for God gives rest to His loved ones. PSALM 127:2 NLT

Where are you finding God’s strength today?