Ready:
“Come to me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, because I am lowly and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” —Matthew 11:28-30
Set:
With all the expectations and pressures from coaches, school, parents, friends and even from yourself, it’s hard to manage it all. It’s a big challenge to get some time to slow things down a little and get a break, and rest. Even getting the proper amount of sleep may seem like only a wishful thing. It’s good to take a good look at your schedule from time to time and see all the expectations and requirements. Building in specific times to stop, look and listen each day and each week is very valuable. It’s good to take moments to rest. Even right now, while you’re reading this, take some deep breaths, and give thanks to the Lord for His presence.
It's no secret that Jesus often took time to take a break and rest. From time to time He would stop, reflect, pray. Often, Jesus did this early in the morning. He would break away from all the duties and details of the day and spend some time with His Heavenly Father. He modeled it well.
As he looked around at people, it was clear to Him that everyone needed rest too. It was not only physical rest, but emotional, mental and spiritual rest. All of this rest comes from Him. This is why He spoke the Scripture verses from Matthew 11:28-30. It was His invitation to come to Him to find rest. He said, “come to me and I will give you rest”. He gave the secret to finding rest too. “Take my yoke” (my ways) and embrace them. Grab onto Him and His ways. When we do this, we find and learn that His ways are not hard and burdensome, but easy and light. We receive and gain the rest we need from Him.
Scripture shows us that Jesus was humble, caring, loving, faithful, always present and always available. He is never too busy or preoccupied with other things. Taking the initiative to come to Him is the best thing to do. Hear His voice and “find rest for your souls.”
Go:
Do you find yourself running from expectation to expectation and you don’t stop to take a break?
What motivates you run and push for success? Is success your goal?
How do you receive the rest that Jesus offers?
Workout:
Overtime:
"Lord Jesus, you are the Prince of Peace who gives us rest. Thank You for Your example of taking breaks and getting rest. For me I need your kind of rest. Help me see You and Your presence. Help me to come to You and I know I will find rest. Take me by the hand and lead me to places of rest. I trust in You. In Jesus’ name I pray and give thanks. Amen."