Finding Real Peace

Every day seems to zip by, and before you know it, you have hit middle age, and busyness seems to be just a way of life. First, growing up as a child, it’s school and sports. Then, college brings more hours spent on school, projects, and social life. Next, we move on to our careers, marriage, and kids. Continuing to pile on the list of responsibilities and events on our schedule. We can live our whole lives on adrenaline, not even realizing we don’t know how to stop, to rest, to check and see if our bodies can cash the checks you are writing. 

In all those years and all those events, who teaches us to pause and rest? Who keeps track of if we have true pause and peace in our lives? For me, as a teenager, I busied myself with school activities, my studies, and a job. My social calendar was also full. I don’t remember my parents pushing me to excel or do more. I had an internal compass focused on achieving more and trying new things. In order to do that, I had to work a lot while attending school to financially make it work. That put me in high drive,  making it ok to work lots of hours without rest. Fast forward to most of my career.  I chose jobs that required a lot of time and headspace to achieve results. The problem was, my body is not one that could just keep taking the abuse and not have rest. Maybe we are all that way? Over time, random medical things would pop up, likely hinting that I should balance my life a bit more, but did I listen? NO!

God speaks to us a lot about rest and the balance or doing good work that we are personally made to do. It only takes looking up a few of those verses to remind us, he does have a map of how to do this well. In the beginning of the Bible, Genesis talks about how God created the world in seven days. It was a whole lot of hard work and each day, he paused to look at it and said, it was good. On the seventh day, he rested. God rested. If he models that balance, who are we to think we don’t need it?  

I don’t know about you, but sometimes I replace rest with worry. At the end of a really full day or week, I am exhausted and worried about how to get all the next things in my head done. I forget that God wants me to give it up to him- just rest and receive. 

Philippians 4:6-7 CEV says, “Don’t worry about anything, but pray about everything. With thankful hearts offer up your prayers and requests to God. Then, because you belong to Jesus Christ, God will bless you with peace that no one can completely understand. And this peace will control the way you think and feel.”  

I have spent the last year doing just that. Spending more time thanking God for what he has given us in our lives. I pray about what is on my mind whether it is financial, spiritual or emotional. And I can honestly say I am feeling peace I haven’t felt in years. I have also balanced my work and rest. I have slowed my roll enough to read my body better. When do I need to sleep? How can I use a hobby to relax me when I am not doing work? Who should I be hanging out with to connect relationally?

Isaiah 58:11 says, “The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden. Like a spring whose waters never fail.”

Give yourself a little space and time today to ask yourself these questions. And if you want help processing how to do it, reach out to me.