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Rest is Necessary This spring has been slow in arriving. Between the frosty mornings, the frozen gardens, the furnace still running long after the usual time, it just hasn’t felt like spring. Yet we have to do the usual spring chores. This year has been different for me. The doctors told me that I would feel tired for several months after the heart surgery. They weren’t kidding. I can run most of the day at my usual pace of life, but I do begin to feel the fatigue. Rest has become a necessity rather than an occasional luxury. Early in my recovery time, I had the routine of a baby – nap in the morning, nap in the afternoon, and go to bed earlier than most adults. This routine was necessary. Rest became a major part of my recovery. Having experienced the surgery & its aftermath, I have a deeper appreciation for those members of Good Shepherd who deal with extended illnesses or surgeries. We do need rest for our physical health. That’s no major new idea, but the pace of life that many of us live demands that we take more time to rest than what we are taking. Have you ever thought to yourself, “I don’t have time to rest, I have to get this done?” God knows what we need, including our need for physical, mental, spiritual, and emotional rest. Consider how He described the reasons for the Third Commandment: (Deuteronomy 5:13-14) Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your ox, your donkey or any of your animals, nor the alien within your gates, so that your manservant and maidservant may rest, as you do. God believes that we need time to rest. He put this rest into the commandment to make us take time for rest even if we think we don’t need it. Jesus took time to rest. He even slept in the back of a boat on a storm-tossed sea. Jesus also made this promise to us&ldots; (Matthew 11:28) Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Jesus knows about the burdens, the workloads, the struggles, the hard work, the life-consuming work that we do. He calls us to come experience His gift of rest. This is rest for the soul, the mind, and the body. The school year is over, the teachers in our schools and in our religion classes will get a much-deserved time to relax. The students will go on to their summer activities. Let’s all take time to enjoy the rest for our souls. Come to worship this summer and enjoy Jesus’ gift of rest. You will be glad you did!
In
Christ,
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