Rest is warfare.

Rest.
It’s a popular word and a trendy thing to talk about—this need for rest and obsession with it, all while feeding the mindset, tendencies, + lifestyle that doesn’t support it.
It’s like talking about rest and knowing it’s possible becomes part of the exhausting task list you’ve built because you know you’re not actually stopping long enough to step into that place.
Does this feel familiar?

This verse in Matthew from the Message (3rd slide) is so rich. We hear this scripture all the time but I think this is the key—“you’ll recover your life.”
In other words, the Shepherd knows His sheep are weary from striving to build a life that’s impossible outside of the restful boundary lines He has already given them.
It’s like He is looking into our souls and saying, “that pace doesn’t even look like Me. Come. Let me show you.”

Rest isn’t the state of not doing anything. It’s not a stale mindset, stagnant decisions, or the removal of production. Rest is the posture of your soul when you truly welcome the freedom of where God has called you, the sovereignty He has over every particular in your life, and the absolute PEACE that floods you when you believe He is trustworthy.
It’s a posture that cultivates a lifestyle centered around the daily act of surrender, knowing your flesh will want to strive and self-protect.
Rest is warfare in every sense of the word—because it’s getting to that place where you feel uncomfortable in the silence of your own mind and then STAYING THERE.
“What’s it all for?”, you ask.

Remember when Jesus was walking in the garden with Adam + Eve and He asked them, “where are you?”
He already knew, of course. And I think He meant location, but mainly—WHERE is your SOUL. How close do you feel to Me? Can you tell me what’s circling inside of you?

Rest is a command because it leads us to the revelation that God doesn’t actually need us. Therefore, the pressure is off.
He wants us. He CHOOSES us. The need is ours.
Can you imagine entering your day with the banner of knowing this: “Whatever I drop, He’s already picked up.
Whatever I need, He’s already there.
And no matter what, I am loved.”
Wouldn’t that change everything?