Rest, relax, rejoice
How can we serve God in his strength?
In 2010 we had just entered the Advent season and I was, as usual, already tied in knots. Every year, sadly, I dread Christmas. Having been in official ministry since 1978 the idea of a quiet, relaxed, family Christmas is a distant memory.
The reading for my devotions that day in 2010 was from Isaiah 43, and the part that struck me was verse eight, along with the first part of verse nine—“Lead out those who have eyes but are blind, who have ears but are deaf. All the nations gather together, and the peoples assemble.” The Shinkaiyaku translation that I use gives the last sentence here as a command: “Cause them to assemble.” (In my daily devotions I use the SOAP system developed by Wayne Cordeiro—Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer.)
My Observation from that began: “There is a song that says, ‘There is none so blind as he who will not see.’1 This is an endemic problem with mankind. An ironic proverb proclaims, ‘My mind’s made up. Don’t confuse me with the facts.’2 God puts His attributes, His love, mercy, power, and the rest on display, but we are remarkably adept at not seeing it for what it is.” For Application, I wrote, “There are times when I feel this passage is my personal commission!”
We try to serve in our own strength
I’m sure there are many who can identify with my feelings. We easily burn out, trying to serve God, knowing in our heads that we can do nothing on our own but still try to do it anyway. It’s interesting that working for God can distract us from him!
That devotional time percolated in my heart and spirit, and three days later I preached a message on “Rest, Relax, Rejoice.” I started out the message by pointing out that God has had a plan from before creation, and man can’t mess up those plans (Ps. 33:10–11). Further, those plans are good, and he provides everything necessary for their fulfillment. None of these things are new to us, yet (in practical ways) we forget them. We feel like we must come up with everything we need and do everything that needs to be done, in the process blocking the flow of God’s Spirit through us.
The Sabbath was given to us as a day of rest. Jesus himself pointed out that priests “break” the Sabbath by taking care of all the things involved in allowing others to keep the Sabbath. That’s why we need to be careful to focus on God, so that we can receive his rest. Too often we focus on the work at hand to the exclusion of the One who assigned that work to us and enables us to do it.
How can we relax?
All of this is very pointed for me, because my parents were missionaries from before WW2. My father hardly knew what “vacation” meant. As a result, he didn’t wake up from heart surgery at age 64. He had essentially worked himself to death. I greatly admire my father, and the Lord’s timing in allowing that meant that he didn’t have to “retire” from Japan, a prospect he had been dreading. However, he was in the middle of a project producing a fresh, more readable Japanese translation of the New Testament, and there were many other ways the Lord was using him as well. I want to be able to serve God for longer than my father did.
The question then is—how are we to relax? The world offers all sorts of things for “relaxation,” however, the real key is refusing to be anxious. There are lots of Bible passages on that, but Matthew 6:31–34 is justly famous. It does no good to take a vacation if we are worried the whole time! And God also wants us to rejoice. Again, there are countless Scriptures, but 1 Thessalonians 5:16–18 stands out.
One familiar passage sums it all up—“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:4–7 NIV).
1. Ray Stevens, “Everything is Beautiful,” 1970. https://www.songfacts.com/lyrics/ray-stevens/everything-is-beautiful (accessed February 25, 2022).
2. Cited on website: Quote Investigator “My Mind Is Made Up. Don’t Confuse Me With the Facts,” https://quoteinvestigator.com/2013/02/13/confuse-me/ (posted February 13, 2013).