Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the Lord your God has commanded you. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your ox, your donkey or any of your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns, so that your male and female servants may rest, as you do.

-Deuteronomy 5:12-14

Some months ago, I preached a sermon series on rhythms of work, rest and worship. As I was preparing the sermon on rest, I felt a bit hypocritical. I was trying to teach the importance of rest, and yet I feel like I don’t know how to really rest myself.

Confession: I have a hard time resting. I know how to escape – but it’s not rejuvenating. I know how to sleep – but I don’t feel recharged. Hobbies? I don’t really have any, and the few I do have can be aggravating or expensive (and I can’t afford more).

When I first heard the song “Non-Stop” in Lin Manuel-Miranda’s Hamilton, a particular line struck me – “Why do you write like you’re running out of time? Write day and night like you’re running out of time?“ I LOVED IT!

But maybe that’s the problem. I found myself wishing that I could survive with 1-2 hours of sleep so that I could read more, write more, study more. I found myself wishing I could get rid of sleep altogether to increase the number of hours I had access to in a 24-hour period.

Essentially, this is a heart issue. I was starting to idolize work. I was putting productivity on a pedestal. I wasn’t wanting more time so that I could rest better. I wanted more time to produce more. 

I am learning the great irony: rest is hard work!

I have to intentionally and purposefully force myself to stop and rest. To remind myself of the fact that even Jesus rested. To wrestle with my heart and remind myself that after the disciples came back from their missions trip, to “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.” (Mark 6:32).

It’s hard work. But necessary. The only way to avoid burnout is learning how to rest properly and incorporating healthy rhythms into life. Ironically, true Christian rest is one of the hardest things I’m learning to do.

For more resources:

7 Ways to Work Hard at Rest – TGC Article

Zeal without Burnout by Christopher Ash