Day 14 | Rewiring Ourselves for Real Rest – Jake

Vacations are amazing. You get to spend time with your family or friends, in a really cool place. Eat yummy foods and hopefully rest. But how often do we come home from vacation and say something along the lines of “I need a vacation from my vacation”? We aren’t resting even when that is the main point of a vacation.

"He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside still waters,"

That sounds pretty peaceful, a good place to take a nap. Shepherds in biblical times did not follow the sheep from behind. They led them to green pastures to eat and quiet waters to drink. Without the shepherd, the sheep would starve and die.

Our Good Shepherd, Jesus had a remedy that is simple but hard to practice for too many of us. “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28 NIV.

Jesus wants us to rely on him. Only this way can we get true rest. I believe that joy is our way of combating so many things that plague our minds. These are the things that prevent us from true rest. I have a simple practice that can hopefully rewire our brains be more grateful and experience joy and real rest. Close your eyes. Think back on a memory that makes you feel grateful and connected to God in that moment. Go back and relive that for 10 seconds.

Doing this will help us to continue to practice joy and notice it more often. To rewire the way that we think and to remember the amazing things God has done for us and the things God will do for us.

REFLECT

What is it about your current "rest" habits (vacations, hobbies, or downtime) that leaves you feeling unfulfilled or still weary?

What specific worries or "burdens" are currently acting as the biggest hurdles between you and the rest Jesus offers in Matthew 11:28?

When you relived that specific memory of feeling connected to God, what did it reveal about His character that you might need to lean on during your current busy season?

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, thank you for all that you have done. You have provided me with so much joy, and so much to be thankful for. We follow you, our great shepherd. I know that you will give me rest if I come to you. So, I am coming to you right now to rely more on you.

TAKE ACTION TODAY

Do the Gratitude Reset.

Close your eyes and think back to a memory that makes you feel grateful and connected to God. Relive that for 10 seconds and invite the Holy Spirit to refresh you in that moment.