Do You Ever Feel Like You Are Getting Rest Wrong?

Do you ever feel like you are getting rest wrong? After years of a fairly stable work rest rhythm, just lately we have had a number of changes in our lfe that have led to me feeling like I am doing rest wrong. That’s not great english, but it’s been this underlying feeling of getting it wrong that has been nagging at me.

I have well established routines and boundaries that have helped me to recover from almost ending up in burnout, not for the first time, and I have been really concious that due to my current season those routines and boundaries are consistently getting eroded. This has created a feeling of almost panic that if I don’t stop getting rest wrong, I might burn out again. It’s funny how just when you think you have things figured out you have a reminder that you don’t. As I have been reflecting on this, it has occurred to me that maybe I don’t need to.

The first thing wrong with the scenario that I have set up for myself is that it isn’t all up to me. It’s not my perfect boundaries and tightly controlled routines that enable rest, although they do help. Rest comes from surrendering control to Jesus, starting each day knowing that as I walk with Him, He provides my rest and I don’t carry it all alone.

The second thing I have come to terms with is that life changes. It makes sense that the rhythms, routines, rest, and boundaries do too. The most important thing is the habit of rest, the intentionality around rest. It’s important to have a work rest rhythm mentality, knowing that as seasons of life ebb and flow, so will the way that we rest in the busier seasons.

The third thing is that I can’t get rest wrong. If I am coming to God for my rest, trusting him, and allowing time for rest then it will be sufficient for the season. Currently I am making small pockets of time where I can, with a few non negotiables that include no phone time in the morning, bible first, regular excercise, and time outside in the morning. My work rest rhythm doesn’t look lke it did a year ago, but that’s ok.

We rest so that we can manage all of the areas that God has called us to. We rest so that our people get the best of us. We rest so that our purposeful work and creative pursuits are inspired, not just what is left from our tired brains. Rest is vital, but it doesn’t have to look the same in every season.