Resting My Thoughts
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“Yes my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from him.” Psalm 62:5
The sunshine and the smell of Spring has always brought the thoughts of Spring cleaning. The cleaning of windows, curtains, and deep cleaning of each room and outside the winter clean up in anticipation of Spring planting. The smells of Spring trigger reminders of years past and the preparation of planting season on the farm. This year just living in my space for a year, I have no thoughts of these tasks. I am waiting for the condo yard crew to do the outside work and with all the updating of the inside, the organizing and cleaning is complete. I am resting from the labor and the thoughts and planning.
Now I am pondering the concept of rest – the resting of my thoughts not just my body. For some of you, your thoughts never stop. It is like a merry-go-round in your head. Thoughts race around concerning the future. These thoughts lead to worry and anxiety. They never stop and you are exhausted mentally and physically because your thoughts do not cease to allow you to sleep peacefully.
These thoughts feed your worry. Worry creates anxiety. Worry is being fearful that nobody is in control, and you take on the role. Worry does not see anybody handling the situation or relationship in the future not even God. This worry heightens your anxiety and you begin to put feelings and emotions into future events that you have not yet experienced. They are just events on a calendar without emotions attached, but when you take today’s feelings and emotions and put them into the future, you create fear and worry. You take away peace from the present, too. You never rest your mind which prevents your body from completely resting.
Rest. We associate rest with inactivity, being lazy, not accomplishing anything. It is a luxury we cannot claim. Rest is impossible you say with your demands, schedule, and responsibilities. I am coming to realize rest is so much more. Rest is a freedom. Rest is silence for a period of time. Rest is not inactivity only. Rest is purposeful. Rest is needed.
I am learning to rest my thoughts which means I am resting from anxiety and worry. It is choosing to rest in the present with my thoughts not focusing on the future. I am resting in God’s presence and strength. It is resting in the assurance God is in control. God cares. God loves me. God has the future. Resting in God’s power, presence, and trusting the future to God. This frees me from worry when I live in the present. I rest my hand in God’s hand. I rest my spirit in the Holy Spirit or more clearly, the Holy Spirit rests or abides within me.
Rest is a peace and contentment that I do not have to be busy and exhausted and overwhelmed and feel guilty about all that I think I should be doing. Rest is beginning each day with a blank slate and listening to God’s plan and guidance, “What do you, God, have for me today?” The world values busy, exhausted, overworked achievers. We see value in accomplishing tasks. Yes, having purpose and completing tasks gives us meaning. Jesus talked about going away to rest and resting in God’s presence through prayer. Jesus saw that meaning and purpose came from God not from the world.
Resting is slowing down our thoughts of negativity and the fear of not doing enough and defining ourselves by our work. God loves us not for what we do but because we are His children. God wants us to spend time resting in His Presence and enjoying His company. It is finding joy just being with God.
Yes, we all have tasks we have to do because we live in this world and have other people dependent on us. But you can rest your thoughts in Jesus and focus on today. It is not worrying about what could happen in the future. Rest in the present. Find peace in the moment.
