So often I have moments where I unconsciously convince myself that progress means you must be constantly in motion. The Bible, however, teaches and confronts me with the fact that there is nothing wrong with resting!
" This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says: “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it." - Isaiah 30:15
For strength is not always and only found in effort, but most certainly also in resting and trusting. Returning to the feet of Jesus, returning to His voice, His pace, His presence.
Far too often we do not realize that rest is a spiritual battle, for resting is Holy!
God Himself rested after He had created the earth on the seventh day (Genesis 2:2-3).
“By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.” – Genesis 2:2-3
Sometimes it takes more work to rest than it does to do more, to be more busy, or to say yes to everything.
Rest does not describe silence as passivity but as an environment where true strength is built up because you charge your “battery” in the presence of the Most High!
The power of the verse from Isaiah 30 stems from what rest brings about. We may sometimes think that we gain stability when we do more or push harder. Instead, the Bible teaches us that strength actually grows when, deep within, in our hearts, we stop chasing noise and distraction but return to the One who gives us direction.
Silence and rest provide clarity.
Trust becomes a kind of power—trust in Jesus.
The strength God gives is not desperate or vulnerable; it is steadfast because it is rooted in Him.
This determines how you approach your day, your week, or your challenges. These are moments when action does not mean speeding up, but rather moments when you re-examine your focus or objective, only this time with God’s help.
“He says, ‘Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” – Psalm 46:10
Likewise, many let us neglect the time we take to be still and to get to know God (Psalm 46:10).
I, too, know all too well how quickly this creeps in. It creeps in just as quickly to get caught up in the busyness of everyday life.
And that is precisely one of Satan’s deadliest weapons against us:
busyness.
We must learn for ourselves and consciously choose to find a balance between the time we spend serving others and the time we receive to be served by our Father. If the devil cannot keep you from being full of fire for God, he will try to stop you by exhausting you. Exhausting you with tasks, obligations, or things you impose on yourself.
So often I experience moments when it feels as if I am being stretched in all kinds of directions, obligations, tasks, and responsibilities pulling at me.
Verse 15 from Isaiah 30 reminds me to try to step out of this moment, which I have often created myself, and to step into the rest that God offers.
It reminds me that returning to Him is not withdrawal or standing still. It is alignment. And aligning with God yields the kind of strength that endures and offers new direction and (renewed) focus.
I want to encourage you with this: take a look at all the things that occupy you and what your week looks like.
Do you consciously choose enough moments to recharge at His feet?
To pause and align with Him and His will?
Or do you let yourself be led by distractions from the enemy?
Are you walking proudly with Him? Show the world that He changed your life, or playfully remind them that “y’all need Jesus” – grab your favorite cap now in the webshop!
