Where Can We Find Rest for Our Souls?
november 28th, 2023 • by Elizabeth Santelmann
Over the years I have earned the self-given title “Queen of late-night problem solving.”
This is not a title I’ve loved, because it often comes at the expense of several hours of sleep. No trouble is too small to merit spending a good chunk of my resting hours turning a problem over and over in my mind until the perfect solution (or the proper amount of self loathing) appears.
Have you been there?
Sadly, most often the hours are spent coming up with solutions to problems that are not mine to solve.
I’m like the watchman described in Psalm 127:2, staying awake in vain:
“It is in vain that you rise up early
and go late to rest,
eating the bread of anxious toil…”
The Bread of Anxious Toil
I go to coffee with a friend who just needs a listening ear and then spend hours working out a solution that I will never actually suggest. If I’m even more honest, the times I’ve waited to problem solve until I got home were the victories. More often I spend our coffee date volunteering to chip in bits and pieces to make things easier. Then I spend the next week overwhelmed and snapping at my own family.
I volunteer myself into exhaustion trying to fix all the problems, because I believe if I don’t do it no one else will. If we are known by our fruit, the fruit I’m known by is panic and anxiety.
I’ve come to realize that much of this impulse is rooted in pride. I spin my wheels of self-sufficiency, worrying incessantly, thinking it all rides on me, and neglecting the rest that is offered to me.
“It is because Jesus is the God who has all authority that you are invited to rest. It is because he can do mighty deeds that you have a light yoke. It is because he is gentle and lowly in heart that our souls can be at ease.”
A Better Way
But Jesus tells us in Matthew 11:28 “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
Earlier in the chapter we see examples of John’s doubt as he tries to logically figure out if Jesus is the Christ. We see cities who would rather do what they want than believe the extraordinary miracles done in them. And, we see Jesus saying exactly who he is as God, revealing the authority that his divinity gives him.
Knowing all of that, we can read Matthew 11:28 in a new light.
It is because Jesus is the God who has all authority that you are invited to rest. It is because he can do mighty deeds that you have a light yoke. It is because he is gentle and lowly in heart that our souls can be at ease (Matt. 11:29). He does not demand that you fix it all because he already finished it on the cross, and he has sent his Spirit to complete his work both in you and in the lives of your family and friends.
You don’t have to lay awake worrying you said the wrong thing and missed out on leading a co-worker to Christ. 2 Peter 3:9 tells us that God is patient with the unbelievers and does not want them to perish. He will use whatever it takes to bring his own to him in his time.
You don’t have to press your child into praying the perfect prayer of faith at the youngest age possible. Instead you can faithfully read them God’s Word, live your faith in front of them, and wait for him to do his work in their heart.
You don’t have to replay your careless words and actions like a broken record. God can redeem even your mistakes or outright sins for his glory (Gen. 50:20).
“You don’t have to replay your careless words and actions like a broken record. God can redeem even your mistakes or outright sins for his glory.”
What is Our Role?
So what is yours to hold?
God has given us his laws and made his will for us clear. The Pharisees of the day would attempt to protect the people by adding to the law so they wouldn’t risk breaking the actual law. This made the life of faith seem complicated and exhausting for the everyday man or woman (much like our own anxieties and cultural expectations).
But Jesus offers something different. He does not bring a yoke of slavery or condemnation. Like a kind and gentle parent, he not only assures his children that he’s got it, but also invites them to learn from him.
Did you hear that? God knows that you are learning, and he offers to teach you! You don’t have to know it all! You don’t have to say things perfectly! You don’t have to have your theology EXACTLY right! He promises to teach you everything he has for you.
Remember, friend: Because of the work that Christ has done because he has reached out and has offered for you to come to him, because he is in this work with you, you can find rest for your soul.
Elizabeth Santelmann is a homeschooling mother of three small boys. She loves reading and always has a large stack of books by her bed. She enjoys seeking beauty by taking photographs. And she started combining her photos with writing on Instagram. Her hope is to share what she is learning about gently nurturing and guiding our children toward the gospel with our lives and speech. Before marriage she worked for 4 years in children’s ministry. She has attended Heritage Presbyterian Church with her husband for the last 10 years. The past three years she has loved using what she learned about reformed theology and children’s ministry to write Bible lessons for her church’s VBS. You can find more from Elizabeth here!
MORE FROM JOURNEYWOMEN
IMPORTANT NOTE
Journeywomen articles are intended to serve as a springboard for continued study in the context of your local church. While we carefully select writers each week, articles shared on the Journeywomen website do not imply Journeywomen's endorsement of all writings and positions of the authors or any other resources mentioned.
