Taking a Rest

Many words have been spoken, written and published about rest, yet we are a culture of the chronically tired.  Sleep deprivation is a pervasive issue and after a year of a global pandemic, there are many ways in which we are all tired.  

Resting seems like a simple behavior.  The definition of rest includes “a brief pause; freedom from labor; and a state of motionlessness”.  That is pretty succinct and do-able.  However, just because something is simple, does not mean it is easy.  Resting continues to be challenging for our culture.  Most of that has to do with the link we make between being busy and feeling important.  

However, some of our issue with rest might be our lack of understanding about HOW to do it.  Living a life that is less depleteing and anxiety-inducing is a never-ending challenge for many, myself included.  In Rebekah Lyons’ book Rhythms of Renewal, she provides four patterns that need to be incorporated into life to become renewed.  They are: REST, RESTORE, CONNECT and CREATE.  The first two of these, rest and restore, are what she calls the input rhythms and help us prepare ourselves to give to others.  

This is nice…a formula that I can follow to help avoid emotional (and physical fatigue).  However, when I examined these two ideas, I had a hard time distinguishing between the two.  Many of the things that might be restful for some people might be restorative to me and vice versa.  But, before we throw out the baby with the bath water, I found that I needed an extra step…practice.   

Giving ourselves permission to rest and restore is an important part of the equation.  Placing this on our calendars will raise its value in our lives.  Practicing how to incorporate rest into my routine is a challenge but I will face it head on.