In HIS rest

Genesis 2:21-22

21 So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, He took one of the man's ribs and closed up the place with flesh. 22 Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib He had taken out of the man, and He brought her to the man.

Have you ever really stopped to think that God's greatest creations, His greatest Gifts, His greatest accomplishments are done while we are in His rest? It's true. This picture of who God really is began all the way back in Genesis. God made everything else upon the earth out of nothingness, but when it came to creating woman, God put man to sleep. He caused the man to rest, took a rib from his side, and formed woman. He didn't leave it at that though. He didn't wake Adam and say, "hey...now go find what I made...it's great" No, God is the greatest Gifter of all time. He woke the man from his sleep and said here, I have created FOR YOU a mate, a helper, a companion, a lover, a friend; here is someone you can become one with!

There is so much more to be found in God's rest. His greatest accomplishments in our lives always come when we rest in His will. When we fully submit to His control over our lives, finances, relationships, and addictions; when we rest from our feeble attempts to be "in control", that's when God can work.

In Psalm 23 we read, "The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul...." The places we go in our lives and the trials that we face are all simply opportunities to lie down and let God do the work. He is our Good Shepherd. He isn't leading us down the path of destruction, but to life eternal. It's through His blood that He has restored our souls! (Also check Matthew 11:28)

To read further into this "Rest" that we have in the Lord, I suggest looking at Luke 22:39. In His greatest prayer ever, while He was accepting His role as sacrificial Lamb in the garden, Jesus' disciples were sleeping. They had found rest even in this hour of terror. And it was during their rest that Jesus fully committed and submitted to the will of the Father! Perhaps if they had been awake they would have had an opportunity to tempt or distract Jesus from His mission. You see, God's greatest gifts are always made while you are resting in Him!

Today, find the peace of Christ in your rest. Rest from your burdens, from your trials. Rest from your afflictions and your worries. Worrying only makes you a worrier; resting allows Jesus to be your Warrior!