“Tomorrow is a solemn day of rest, a holy sabbath to the Lord; bake what you will bake, boil what you will boil, and all that is left over lay aside to be kept until morning.” Exodus 16:23
Rest is not a popular practice or way of life in today’s fast-paced society. Busyness is admired and makes us feel worthy. We keep moving and trying to achieve more in our life. We believe bigger is better and having expensive things makes us important, so we keep striving and working for more. We keep our plate overloaded and our schedules full. We cry out how there is not enough time to breathe as though it is a badge of honor. Anxiety and overwhelm pour out of our uneasy hearts from all there is to do and worry about. Work hard, play harder and you’ll sleep when you're dead are popular sayings people often quote. All of it reeks of the world. It’s not how God intended us to live.
Spiritually, rest can refer to different types of stillness. We can physically rest our bodies from moving and working. We can also rest our heart and soul from toiling and stressing. Even when our bodies are still, our mind can be in overdrive planning, worrying, and even replaying moments/outcomes over and over again. Similar to our computer with multiple tabs open at once, our minds can be constantly running, thinking about all the things. It can feel impossible to be still and turn off the thoughts.