Skip to main content

... And the rest ...


(I've decided to pull out some blog posts from the archives ... this one is from July, 2006 ... )

Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested  from all his work. And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. - Genesis 2:1-3

God rested. I read this passage, and wondered, How does God rest? I asked a Really Good Friend this question. He told me, "God sits in his La-Z-Boy recliner with the remote control, and surfs through 1,000 channels and still can't find anything good to watch!"

hmm.... Man is created in the image and likeness of God ... but I was looking for an answer from the deeper end of the Think Tank...

Our lives can be hectic at times. Whenever I finish a task when I am at work, I take a moment to reflect upon what I did. These fleeting moments of rest are sometimes mini-celebrations. Usually, it's a very brief "Yet, that report is finished!" or "Woo-hoo, I have an empty folder!" And on Friday afternoon when the office door closes behind me, the celebration really starts!

While God was creating the world, he paused at the end of the day to reflect upon the goodness of what he had done. It was a time of to contemplate the satisfaction of a task completed. Then after he finished creating the universe, he made an entire day holy, a day of rest.

Rest is a paradox. It is an activity (a "do-ing" thing) in which we stop do-ing. When we "do" rest, or actively rest, we can just "be" with God.  And God gives us the thing we do -- "rest." Even in resting, we still are doing something. When we rest in God, we are doing what is pleasing to Him. That is when we experience the love, peace, joy, and comfort that comes from being in God's presence.  

In Jeremiah 6:16, we are told "Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls." Jesus tells us, ""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). The Message translation refers to Jesus' invitation as "learning the unforced rythms of grace." Wow!

But going back to my original question. How does God rest? True, God never stops working in our lives or in the world around us. He never grows tired or weary (Isaiah 40:28), and does not need to stop to be rejuvenated.

Parents find a peaceful and joyful sense of rest when their child comes to them, cuddles in their arms and says "I love you" (without the follow-up question "Can I have ... "). I think in the same way, God rests when we go to him open-armed and empty-handed, with pure love, adoration, and devotion for him, and seek rest in his loving arms.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Stories ... We all have one ...

Isaiah 20:2-   At that time the Lord spoke by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, “Go, and loose the sackcloth from your waist and take off your sandals from your feet,” and he did so, walking naked and barefoot. In this passage God sends Isaiah to give a warning to Israel.   In addition to using words, God instructs Isaiah to do something more.   God instructs him to walk naked and barefoot for three years!    Certainly, Isaiah felt uncomfortable about what he was being called to do, but remained obedient.   The message, Isaiah was delivering far outweighed the embarrassment of being uncovered. Sometimes when we feel the prompting of God’s Spirit to share how Jesus has changed our lives we may feel uncomfortable with what God is asking us to do.   We may feel embarrassed or ashamed to “expose” our past to others for fear that we may be ridiculed or rejected if people knew what we would rather keep hidden.   We all hav...
3 comments
Read more

Great!

Psalm 145:3  Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom. All throughout history there have been men and woman who were considered great for one reason or another.   Thomas Edison was a great inventor; Madame Curie, a great scientist; Michael Jordan, a great basketball player.   Those who grew up in the 30’s and 40’s are said to be of the Greatest Generation.   And I can’t forget - Al and Martha Thuente are great parents (I ought to know – they’re mine)!   Usually what makes a person great is his or her accomplishments or reputation of doing good things.   But a person’s deeds and goodness have a limit.   No matter how great someone is, he can   only know so much, can do so much, can give so much, because his wisdom, ability and resources are finite.   Greatness can only be so great.   When we think of God, his greatness is limitless.   Even the greatest of men could not have created...
2 comments
Read more

Cardboard Prison

When I was very young I would often sit in a corner and think.  It wasn’t because I was in trouble – I was just a very introspective kind of person, even as a child.  And often my dad would ask, “What are you doing, Mary?”  “Oh, just thinking.”  “What are you thinking about?”  “Ooh, nothing…”   “Well, how do you know when you’re finished?”  and I’d usually let out a little giggle, and be off to do something else. It is often said that the times that people are most reflective about their lives    is during times of stillness, when in the quiet all they have is their thoughts.   Imagine with me if you will, that we are peering into thoughts of someone who is in that place of reflection.   Now before we go there, let me say that this person whose thoughts we are about to delve into IS NOT ME.   It is a fictional person we’ll call Alex.   Alex can be representative of anybody.   So without further ado, let’s see w...
1 comment
Read more