June 24, 2016

When God Just Keeps Saying the SAME Thing... Rest - a Five Minute Friday post

You know how it goes... {Insert Gushing Comment about my tribe over at #fmfparty on Twitter and the whole Five Minute Friday Community here.}


This is Five Minute Friday (- a five minute timed free write) and our One Word Prompt for the day is: REST

{GO}

I can't seem to escape this word... or of the need for it to manifest in my life.

Rest... we all need it!  

We hunger and thirst for it even --but it's not loud and it will not shout for our attention.

It's easy to put it off... push it aside... or think we are immune to needing it.  

It's not something this world offers freely and it will not happen on accident!  



True rest is intentional and slow... it seeps down deep to water our roots and often it's only when we find ourselves bone dry and dying of thirst that we notice our need of it!


I can't quit writing about it... or feeling the push and pull to, you know, actually DO it! To participate in actively pursuing Sabbath and Rest.

It was God's idea (and example, btw!) ...and we so need it --it's just that in our chaotic culture of multitasking and bossy calendars... in our quest for productivity and social media accomplishments, we forget that we actually hit that proverbial brick wall if we do not stop and practice a little self-care by entering in to rest --preferably, His rest... but honestly, either way. Our bodies do THE MOST productive work while we are resting... so it's not surprise that when we cut sleep short, burn the candle at all ends, and run --literally run (read: speed. What? It's fine.) from one thing to the next... we are actually running straight for burn out!

Rest is something I can't get away from... I find myself longing for it, minutes after I have found it! I pray and declare over myself --that I will remember to make it a practice --a discipline. 

I remind myself that Resting and Not Doing Stuff are not the same!

Rest is slow, yes. But it doesn't have to take long.



I'm like a broken record about the practice of simply Five Minutes of Silence! (Thank you, James Bryan Smith!) If we are intentional in our pursuit and prioritizing of Rest, we will find that it can happen in the in between, even if the in between is not that time consuming!

I love how Eugene Peterson says that sometimes we need to let our souls catch up to our bodies.

Yes. That.

And it's summertime! A season that both slows and clutters, right? Less routine, but more activity... and much of that can be restful.  Vacations, little breaks, casual get togethers, concerts in the park, movies outside, walks in the cool of the day... 

Wait... that sounds familiar!

Selah (...which means to pause and ponder... which sounds a bit like Rest to me!)


{STOP}

I almost didn't write because... well, like I said - Rest is apparently one of my Life Messages and it seems I don't go too many days in a row without talking about it (and needing it myself!)

Also there is this:  My Honey and I, along with our pastors, are off to the mountains to pray and plan... and 'squeeze in' a bit of Rest, too!

Praying you find Rest this week. 
  May you seek it out, make room for it.

You just may be surprised at how good it feels and how dry and thirsty your soul was --trying to keep up with your body! 





Linking up with Kate Motaung and the #fmfparty Community today.  Five Minute Fridays gives us the chance to dive right in and share what He puts on our hearts! Click HERE to read what others have to say about: "REST"

The FMF lowdown: The gathering happens on Twitter on Thursday nights & then we write our hearts out & hit publish all over the interwebs on Thursday & Friday (& sometimes on Tuesdays!) It's where we encourage & uplift... where we share prayer requests & praise reports... where we talk food & friends & we find support & kindred hearts. It's where we are reminded that life is good & God is good & we're not alone... & then we all write for five minutes flat, a flash mob of wordsmiths letting our hearts & our fingers do the talking tapping & we hit publish before we can second guess it all away. We'd love to have you join us!


I'm also linking up with:

#FreshMarketFriday... how adorable is that?














and #LetUsGrow

12 comments :

  1. Hello Karrilee. I'm joining you for the first time at Five Minute Friday, and am so pleased to "meet" you. I agree with you that rest involves both physical rest and resting in God; the two cannot be separated. What a topic for us women to grasp and fully embrace. It's a discipline, as you mentioned, for sure!

    Thanks for sharing your perspective!

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    1. K. Ann, thanks so much for stopping by! You are welcome any time! Praying you found a bit of Rest this weekend... and that you continue to pursue it every day!

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  2. Loving the Eugene Peterson quote. The rest that I crave is a soulish thing that has little to do with sleep. Trusting God for that book of Hebrews kind of rest that God invites us into!

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    1. Amen! I have been reading the book of Hebrews in the Passion translation... oh my goodness! So good!

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  3. My retired life living on a mountaintop is not as full of activity as it once used to be. So physical rest is easier. Now as to mental and emotional rest, oh, what a battle that is! God is teaching me the secret to internal rest - I hope I learn well.

    GOD BLESS!

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    1. Amen and me, too! Thanks so much for stopping by, Sharon!

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  4. Hi Karrilee,
    Rest has been beckoning me, too! I desire it so much, yet do not know what to put to the side to obtain it! Our family has been bombarded by health issues and it seems I can hardly catch my breath before heading into another appointment or another test for another of us. However, I am believing God has rest as a part of the plan soon! I wanted to invite you my new(ish) link-up on Mondays. It is called Moments of Hope and my prayer is that God brings hope-filled posts each week t that point to Him and the hope of the world!
    Blessings and smiles,
    Lori

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    Replies
    1. Lori, thanks so much for stopping by - and for the invite! I will check it out! Who doesn't need a little more hope? Praying for you and your family... Rest in the midst of chaos and silence in the midst of noise --it's possible! With Him, it is possible, and I am praying you find both!

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  5. Love you friend! THIS: "True rest is intentional and slow... it seeps down deep to water our roots and often it's only when we find ourselves bone dry and dying of thirst that we notice our need of it!" Catching up on a few of the FMF posts I missed.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks so much for stopping by and catching up, my friend! ;) Praying you got a bit of intentional rest while you were gone!

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  6. That is so true : Resting and not doing stuff are not the same......

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    1. Amen! May we remember the difference so ew can truly enter in to His Rest! Thanks for stopping by!

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Thanks so much for stopping by! I always love to hear your thoughts! Remember to: Speak Life - Be Love - Shine On!
~Karrilee~

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