Freely Speaking with Shayla

Sometimes, life can feel like a rat race! Our plates can quickly become full as we juggle numerous responsibilities and duties. Before we realize it, enjoying life can be daunting due to exhaustion and over-exertion. Therefore, during this season of thanksgiving, I decided to be thankful for our Heavenly Father, who makes us rest. Yes, he makes us rest!

 Psalms 23:2 (KJV) declares, “He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.” Enjoying your family when your days are filled with busyness isn't easy. It is much easier to enjoy the beauty and holiness of this season with a rested spirit. My heart is overwhelmed with thanksgiving for a God who will make us lie down in a place of comfort.

My youngest daughter has a much earlier bedtime in comparison to her siblings. At her younger age, she needs more rest to be her best the next day. She doesn’t always like the fact that I make her lie down. She wants to keep going, but I know rest is in her best interest. Sometimes, we may push our bodies, minds, and spirits beyond what we can bear, but our Heavenly Father is a perfect parent, and, in his goodness, he makes us rest. As I think about my daughter, I see myself pushing to keep going and, thus, become even more thankful for the perfect God who knows my limits. His son, Jesus, declared in Mark 2: 27 (KJV), “…The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.” How amazing is our God for creating the Sabbath for us to rest?

As I take inventory of the abundance of blessings God has bestowed upon me, this is the first time rest has come to mind. But this Thanksgiving, I am thankful for rest. And even more grateful for God, who cares so intensely for me that he would make me lie down in a place of comfort! I pray that this holiday season, you will embrace God and his rest.