REST

A common theme of life we can all relate with is difficulty. Life is hard. We all face certain demands manifested in a varity of ways. We get stuck in routines that for the most part drain us more than they bring rest to the soul. We face tough circumstances and are faced with the demands of making difficult decisions. We forget to hydrate ourselves as we walk through the dry deserts life often brings us through. We lose our bearings and navigating these deserts becomes quite difficult. This takes such a heavy toll on our souls. Our hearts become pressed and restlessness enters in. We fantsize of rest and peace, yet, for some reason we forget how to obtain it.

Rest. O the beauty of rest. How we long for it. I am not simply refering to the rest of our physical bodies but the rest of our soul which I have found brings even physical rest. When was the last time you experienced this kind of rest? God brought me to a place of rest this last weekend. What a gift it was.

I went to San Antonio to be apart of the wedding of one of my closest friends. Wednesday I departed from Orange County and went back to a familiar place, the place of my upbringing, the Texas Hill Country. I saw old friends yet was able to meet new ones. Leaving California I asked my Father to let this weekend simply be a weekend of rest. I found that rest there in Central Texas. Finding and experiencing that rest did not necessarily involve secluding myself but by being around a community of people who love me and I them. I was able to leave behind the tail end of some of the battles I have been walking through here in California, that have indeed taken there toll upon my heart. I was able to simply be removed for at least a weekend. Through beautiful conversations and God orchestrated moments I found rest in my soul. Praise God!

Rest comes in a variety of ways. It may mean turning off your cell phone or ceasing from checking email just to remove yourself, even for a moment, from some of the demands in life. This is good and well needed. I have been reminded through this weekend that even in the battles and difficulties that life can bring before me that removing myself, not out of neglegence but simply out of necessity rest will come and enable me to better navigate through the deserts.

Remove yourself, stop and enjoy the beautiful moments that our Father will bring us into if only we will allow him to do so.

Beautiful rest come and breathe life into this weary soul!