Resting Place
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“God said to them, “Here is a place of rest; let the tired people come and rest. This is the place of peace.” Isaiah 28:12
“The Lord says, “This is my resting place forever. Here is where I want to stay.” Psalm 132:14
I spent time with one of my dearest friends recently. Ray is ninety-eight-years old which leads him to be reflective on life. He is content in his space when he is carving and completely immersed in his creation. While his fingers are busy and his mind is focused, he is resting in the comfort and quietness that his hobby affords him. It is his resting place.
Ray and I talk about Heaven in most of our visits. He knows Heaven gets closer each day. Ray is not comforted with the idea of mansions and streets of gold. This seems too worldly and not restful to him. But if you read John 14, Jesus tells the disciples that He is going to prepare for them a place. Jesus prepares a place just for us and then comes back to take us to this place – our resting place. It will be a place of complete peace and contentment with Jesus. To me, that is what Heaven is – a place of rest with Jesus. This concept also brings comfort to my friend, Ray.
As we await Heaven, we still have life to live here on earth. Life seems chaotic, empty, lonely, busy, filled with uncertainty, painful, and broken. How do we find rest in this world? For me, my physical place is changing again, and I am looking forward to a resting place that is just mine. A place to again create with my own style and signature. It is good to have a place that is safe and comfortable, a place where you surround yourself with possessions that reflect your memories and personality. But there is more to a resting place than just material comfort.
I find rest in certain people. I have a share partner in whom I find spiritual rest. We are connected by our love for Jesus, and we share on a spiritual level how we see and feel God through our daily lives. I also find rest in my friendship with my ninety-eight-year-old friend. The depth of conversation rests my soul with the one whom he has surrendered his life to - Jesus, and how he is living in the moments while anticipating the reunion in Heaven.
But most of all, I find my resting place in Jesus. When my soul is tired and weary, Jesus gives me rest. I find rest from using words. I listen daily to words from the hearts of those who hurt in my counseling ministry. I try to share with them the words The Holy Spirit gives to me. I read words of Scripture daily to grow closer to God. I pray to share words of worship, intercession, and thanksgiving. The hurt and pain of this world and of those I love is overwhelming and I pour out these feelings to God in prayer. So, my resting place is not in words spoken to Jesus, but in the still quietness of my soul being in the presence of God. Just being present and speaking no words. To sit in the stillness of a moment, to watch the beauty of a sunset, or the falling leaves and just rest in God’s abiding presence.
It is clearing my mind of all those racing thoughts. Putting a stop sign in my head for awhile of the list of all I need to do. It is just emptying my basket of tasks and doing nothing that merits achievement to the world. It is breathing deeply the Spirit into the depths of my being. This time seems so unproductive but so necessary to heal my soul. No distractions. Nothing pressing. No commitments. No grief or sadness for a moment. Just a resting place. I just tune out the world with all of its brokenness and stress, and I rest my soul from the pain. I need time to heal and re-charge. I need a place where evil, sin, pain, hurt, paperwork, tasks, and everything that tries to fill up my head cannot enter. It is a place Jesus prepares for us – a glimpse of Heaven on earth.
We need a resting place if just for a moment. I place where for just a moment it is just you and God. I place where our souls rest. Find your resting place. I am working on those resting place moments.
