"Rest"

Jesus said let’s rest awhile,

And like the preacher said,

Saved the world in three years,

And then they killed Him dead.

But stop and think about the fact,

He accomplished all you see,

The Father sent the Son to do,

To save humanity.

And yet He had to draw aside,

To think and rest and pray,

Sometimes late into the night,

Or at the break of day.

And if He needed to do that,

Why do we think that we,

Have to work most all the time,

Without down time you see.

Without a phone or screen to watch,

A total disconnect,

A sabbath in the truest sense,

It would help a lot, I ‘spect.

‘Cause we’re busy, busy, busy,

And we think that gives us worth,

But truth is that our busy-ness,

Creates chaos on this earth.

Not to mention harm it does,

To our bodies and our health,

All because we haven’t found,

What brings to us true wealth.

Draw aside and take some time,

To rest and get some peace,

You’ll be glad and thank the Lord,

Productivity increase.

“But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed…” (Luke 5:16, NIV)

This verse is placed in the contest of Jesus’ widespread popularity. Everywhere He went crowds gathered to hear Him teach and to receive healing. When things got the busiest, Jesus withdrew often to a lonely place to pray. Sometimes He slipped away and the disciples didn’t know where He was for awhile. They would go looking, and he’d be out there somewhere with the heavenly Father. Is it any wonder, then, that the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray? They saw Him draw aside to pray and then come into the multitudes with great power to heal and help. Sometimes everybody in town got healed! What a lesson for us. When we are the busiest, that is when we most need to rest and pray. Think about it.

Lord, give us Your rest, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Bruce Greene, used by permission. Thanks, Bruce, and God bless you.