Summer Secrets for Rest, Part 1

Yawns in the grocery line, fatigue in the voices over the phone, and dozing in the theatre confirm that weariness permeates our society. All around us, we observe people who are drained by unresolved office conflicts, depleted by researching solutions for aging parents, exhausted by ongoing financial roadblocks, and tired of praying for a prodigal.

While summer’s seasonal delights (snow cones, baseball games, s’mores, reunions, picnics, fireworks, outdoor activities) may well bring refreshment, the need for rest remains with us year-round. And, life has taught me that true rest, the quality we hunger for in the depths of our souls, can only be found in a Person. 

Summer Secret #1

Rest is Discovered in a Person

“My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from Him.”

“Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my home comes from Him.”

(Psalm 62:1, 5)

Return with me to a morning decades ago in Warsaw, Poland, when I desperately needed God. Ensconced in a cocoon of solitude, I pondered life. Though the concrete walls on two sides nearly touched my shoulders, the nook was mine — a haven.

Seclusion came at a high price with three small children in our home. Larry graciously fed them breakfast in this season of our lives so that I could be alone with Jesus. Morning after morning, I returned to my sanctuary to meet with the Lord. The effort was worth it; He always met me.

On this dismal fall day, I gazed out the window. A thick morning fog hung heavily in the air; the trees had no leaves. Coal pollution poured from smoking chimneys. Across the street, the neighbor’s house looked abandoned in its unfinished state of construction. Indeed, a lifeless, gray-colored everything. 

I needed these moments, and I needed the rich, steaming, black coffee served in my favorite mug. Life felt like a runaway express train, with my husband as the conductor. At this warp speed, vulnerability tossed me about like a cork in a churning sea of chaos.

Shoving aside challenges of a clandestine pioneering ministry, shutting out communist propaganda, and slamming the door on the voice of the enemy of my soul, I came to my only source of strength, and I prayed, “Lord, I need something to lift me out of my quagmire.”

Opening my Bible to the next portion of Scripture in my ongoing plan, I read Daniel 4:34:

 “I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored.” What? I read and reread the verse: “I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored.”

As spiritual reality slowly sank in, I nearly shouted. “That's it!” Incredulous, I devoured the words that crafted this high-impact statement.

God's message was clear: Look at Me — not at the nasty street, not at the crummy weather, not at your lack of sleep, not at the Communists, not at the distance from family, not at the needs of the little ones you so love, not at your husband’s daunting schedule. No, Look at Me.

Sitting in my sanctuary — in a brown wooden chair at a brown wooden desk — a radical transformation occurred. “God, I choose to believe! If this worked for Nebuchadnezzar, this would work for me.” Choosing to look up, my faith focus shifted from my temporal circumstances to my eternal resources.

In that moment ... I changed.

The change proved genuine. My circumstances remained challenging. The needs of my family only escalated. And life’s speed still raced at full throttle. Yet, I began to discover a new, fresh, ongoing victory over not being controlled by my circumstances and pushed around by my problems.

Yes, on a cold, communist-era morning, God highlighted one verse with His holy illumination: I raised my eyes to heaven, and my sanity was restored. In my concrete cubicle, I learned a lesson for life:

To look down is to be discouraged.

To look around is to be disappointed.

To look within is to be disillusioned.

 To look up is to see Him!

 A secret emerged that has stood the test of time: God is the Source of true, lasting, ongoing rest.

[Taken from Pulling Back the Iron Curtain, Light for the Soul of a Weary Mom]

Living With Eternal Intentionality® 

Key Passage: Psalm 62

v. 1 “My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from Him.”     A secret

v. 5 “Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from Him.”     A command

How would you describe the difference between relief and rest?

What does your soul need to find rest this summer?

A Tribute to My Mother at 95

The Power of Moments* beautifully describes the significance of celebrating my mother’s 95th birthday. Surrounded by her Breakfast Bunch (lifelong friends who meet on Saturday mornings for breakfast at Veronica’s) and encircled by her family, this selfless lady had her day in the sun.

While the intent was to honor this woman for her nine and a half decades, those of us attending came away awestruck by her life, her life of choices. She grew up in hard times, but never felt slighted. She lost her brother in World War 2, but refused to be bitter. She lives as a widow, but rejects loneliness. She prays and reads her Bible daily because she is a woman of faith. And her teenage great-grandchildren take her phone calls; go figure.

This 95-year-old’s birthday party was a study in choices. Life is made up of choices, and choices make all the difference. Happy Mother’s Day, Mama. You have taught me how to live.

“Choose Life, so that you and your children may live.” (Deuteronomy 30:19)

Living With Eternal Intentionality®

“For me to live is Christ.” (Philippians 1:21)

What life-giving choices are you making today that influence your relationships? Why is Deuteronomy 30:19 of utmost importance for us?

The Power of Moments is a book by Chip Heath and Dan Heath

The Obvious Question

Three grief-stricken women faced an emotional and challenging task on that first Easter morning. Jesus died the day before, and they wanted to anoint His Body for a proper burial. Just after sunrise, they made their way to the tomb. But they had to acknowledge a problem of gigantic proportions — “Who will roll away the stone?”

Suddenly, their ordinary question received an extraordinary answer. When they looked up, the stone was rolled away, and the empty tomb confirmed the resurrection of Jesus!

The Scriptures tell us the account.

“But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed. “Don’t be alarmed, he said. You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen!” (Mark 16:1-6).

God Still Rolls Away Stones Like the women on Easter morning, we grapple with our own obstacles, our personal problems of gigantic proportions. In relationships, in finances, and in disappointments, we ask, “Who will roll away the stone?” Yet when we look up—like Mary, Mary, and Salome—we discover that God, in His glorious faithfulness, has rolled away the stone; maybe last minute, but on time, in time, exactly when needed. For our all-powerful, loving God, His faithfulness and His grace are greater than the stone, regardless of its size.

God Still Wants to Display the Resurrection Within all our human conundrums of heartache and hopelessness, God wants to accomplish a greater miracle than rolling away the stone. Right where we live and breathe and work and play, it brings Him pleasure to display the Resurrection of His Son for His glory and for our good!

Hallelujah, what a Savior!

Living With Eternal Intentionality®

“He is not here; He is risen!” (Luke 24:6)

1. What would you have been thinking if you were walking with the women on that early Easter morning? What would have been your concerns? Would you have given thought to the stone?

2. How now? Where do you need God to roll away the stone in your life?

3. What would it look like not only for the stone to be removed, but for the Resurrection to be displayed in that situation?