He Is Our Rest by Latta-Claire

Hey everyone!

I am SO glad you are here!

Grab yourself an iced coffee (or tea) and I hope that by reading this you can leave here a little more encouraged!

Something I have been challenged with lately is that even though we can create spaces that lead to rest, only one person can give our souls TRUE rest!

JESUS IS OUR REST

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

This verse above is so encouraging to me. In a world that says we have to hustle to be successful, Jesus encourages us in this passage to not take upon the world’s yoke (for it is heavvyyyy) but instead to take upon His, because it is easy and light!

God does not want us to be burdened down by the weight of this world, but rather He wants us to find rest in Him, and to realize we do not have to live in the heaviness of this world.

I don’t know about you, but I feel like there has been a lot of heaviness in the world lately and it can feel exhausting. Something we should remind ourselves of is that while yes, the world is a place of brokenness, this does not mean we have to live broken, too.

God can restore us, rejuvenate us, and strengthen us!

But I understand- Life can feel overwhelming.

We are carrying unnecessary burdens that weigh us down everyday. Maybe it’s anxiety. Maybe you are in a constant cycle of worry and fear that feels as if it’s strangling you and you cannot escape from it.

Maybe you have a lot on your plate and you never feel like you can be still or just rest. The hustling never seems like it is going to end, and you feel behind if you try to rest.

Life is overwhelming, because we live in a fallen world with an enemy who is seeking to destroy the very meaning of the word ‘rest’.

The word ‘rest’ means to cease work or movement in order to relax, refresh oneself, or recover strength.

Satan does not want us to relax, refresh ourselves, or recover our strength because it means that we then have the ability and energy to overcome our struggles, and we have the energy to be our best selves and to actually do BIG things for His Kingdom. In order to pour out good things for His kingdom, we must first be filled with His goodness!!

Not only do we need physical rest, but we need spiritual rest. We need to be rejuvenated physically and spiritually.

We all know what physical rest looks like, but do we know what spiritual rest looks like? I think this looks like experiencing and choosing to see God in ALL things. Are we being intentional with our prayers, reading His word, and reclining in the knowledge that God is good?

We serve a good God and He wants us to be rejuvenated, filled, and full to the brim. Not running on fumes, exhausted, and unable to present our best selves. He has too much for us to accomplish in our lives for us to be running on fumes.

I encourage you to look at the entirety of this verse below and realize that when we shift from dwelling in the world’s idea of ‘rest’ to dwelling in God’s, there is TRUE rest from the heaviness of this world.

Prayer for your Week:

Dear God,

I pray that you would shift my eyes to seek You in everything I do. I pray that You would direct my attention to who You are so that I am not dwelling in the brokenness of this world, but instead dwelling in the goodness of who You are. Help me to realize that only You can give rest that my soul truly needs and that You want me to live rejuvenated and full of strength, not running on fumes.

Amen.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

• Latta Claire