A Different Kind of Rest
/Do you often find yourself worn out and exhausted? Not like you’ve run a marathon but like your whole self is tired? You’re physically tired too, yes, but there’s also a mental and spiritual component. Do you feel this way sometimes even before the day begins, or maybe halfway through the day? Jesus calls those who are tired to come to him and He says he will give rest - rest for our souls. This is a deeper inner rest that you truly desire. This rest is so deep that it affects your bones.
But you say, “I’ve come to Jesus and I’m still tired. The inner kind of tired. Why is that?” Jesus calls us to come to him and he says His yoke is easy and His burden is light. If you feel like the yoke is hard and the burden is heavy, it’s possible that you’re in the service of another master without realizing it.
What is your motivation?
There are some examination questions you can ask yourself to figure this out. Stop and think for a moment – what was one activity or one part of your day that left you feeling tired today? What was your motivation for accomplishing that task?
Recently I had a late-night task I had to accomplish, and I was physically tired before it even began. I started in on the task and instantly thought about whether or not anyone would notice. This just made me more physically tired and added a new component, soul tired. In that moment, the grace of God shone in and I saw the motive that was contributing to my exhaustion. I was hoping someone would notice and praise my efforts. I thought, “What a terrible reason to be here right now. What emptiness is in this motive.” First of all, given the nature of the work, no one was likely to notice. Second of all, even if someone did notice and was impressed, so what? Would any one person’s approval be enough for me? Would it even last into the next day? Or would I just need to prove myself again?
This is just one example of a motive that ends up leaving you worn out and exhausted, though the approval of others is a common motive. Can you think of other motives that relate more to your situation? Maybe your motive is to do enough good that you can finally forget about past sins. Maybe your motive is to have enough finances to feel secure over your future or to gain a level of control in a hard situation. Maybe your motive is to finally feel accepted by a crowd or an individual. Either way, if you feel that tiredness deep into your soul, take a deeper look into what is motivating you. Our motive is our master, and all of the motives mentioned above come from a cruel master.
You can’t give rest to your own soul
The only motive that will not leave you feeling soul tired is the one given from the master who promises to give you an easy yoke, a light burden, and rest for your soul - inner rest. You can’t give rest to your own soul. Your soul is actually too important for that. It won’t be satisfied with the small approval of others, temporary security, or acceptance into a group. None of that is big enough or steady enough. Your soul can only be satisfied by the one who created it. Jesus calls you to come to Him for soul rest and trust him for the love, approval, forgiveness, and acceptance that you’re really after. The holy God who made you, and knows your failures, loves you anyways. He proved it by hanging on a cross. Now you can work for Him, but not to gain His acceptance. You work out of the gratitude of His acceptance and the freedom it gives you. You can rest knowing that even when you fail at the tasks He gives you, He doesn’t threaten to remove His love and care. This truth brings rest. It brings soul rest. The circumstances of your life may be such right now that the physical tiredness isn’t going away any time soon, but in these moments, Jesus is big enough to revive your soul even though the body remains tired.
So, if your soul is tired right now or becomes tired today, stop and ask yourself, “What is my motive?” This will help you see if you’ve wandered under the service of a cruel master. If you have, there’s good news. Jesus is ready to embrace you over and over again. Come to Him. He will give rest for your soul.
If you would like to read more on this topic, Alan Noble’s book, “You Are Not Your Own”, deals with the different faulty motives from which the world encourages us to operate. Alan Noble will be joining us at our next CATC Training event on October 19th.