God Speaking

“He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul.”

(Psalm 23: 2 – 3)

Since I was young life has picked up a pace and despite all the new gadgets that are supposed to make life easier, I see people’s lives becoming more and more frantic. Over and over again, I see those around me looking at their watches to see how many steps they have taken. A terrible burden it seems to get those daily steps in to make sure their bodies are fit. I hear a buzz of a phone and see the hurried response of the holder to race for an appointment their phone is reminding them about. Anxiety and depression more prevalent than ever.  No time to stop and rest. 

Psalm 23 reminds us of all that we need the quiet time to rest, not only for our physical well-being but for our spiritual wellness, for the restoring of our souls. We can only restore our souls by seeking times and places of quiet to spend with our Savior, to unload our tension, seek his guidance, enjoy his presence and to feel his love surround us. 

Jesus sets an example for us to follow, if the Son of God needed to go away by himself to a quiet place and speak to the Father, how much more do we need to do that. 

“But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.” (Luke 5: 16)

Where I live, the weather has been unusually warm and on my daily walk, which goes down beside the water, I made my way to a bench under a huge tree. As I sat down to rest, the beautiful shadow of the tree cooling and calming me, I recalled the verse in Psalm 91. This was a quiet spot to talk to God and to know he is with me. 

“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.” (Psalm 91: 1)

I rested my body, enjoying the presence of the Lord. 

There are many references to rest in the Psalms, as the Psalmists knew the importance of our souls needing rest. They knew that only the Lord could supply that restoring of our souls. 

“My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from him.” (Psalm 62: 1)

Perhaps one of the most beautiful promises Jesus makes to us, is to seek him for perfect rest and restoration. Only He can flood us with energy and strength. How foolish we are to forget and not listen to his wisdom, as he invites us to stop and rest with him. 

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11: 28)