Rest is a defining and glorious weapon that God has given to His children in order to combat the confusion and distraction of the enemy.
The enemy sends the false need for busyness into our lives in order to deceive us into assuming that productivity is tied to activity.
In the Father’s kingdom, productivity is birthed from the DNA of rest. His victorious kingdom does not adhere to the principles and distorted thinking that are conceived in fleshly pursuits.
The enemy wants to keep you in a perpetual state of frustration and distraction. He wants to keep you involved in any empty activity that denies you the joy that is exclusively discovered in rest.
Satan wants you dissatisfied.
God wants you to rest.
The enemy wants you vexed and hustling.
God wants you to trust.
The devil wants you to fruitlessly spin empty plates in the air.
God wants you to be at ease in His presence.
“For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength. Yet you were not willing” (Is. 30:15, MEV).
If the desire of your heart is to live a strong life and to experience a powerful existence that smacks with God’s pleasure, then you will choose the undeniable delight of quietness and rest!
Are you willing to live that life? Are you willing to embrace an extraordinary life of rest, trust and strength?
Are you willing to simply rest?
The voice of the deceiver absurdly attempts to overpower the wisdom of the kingdom. The enemy shouts incessantly and then throws false information in our direction that can either be embraced or ignored. Satan is solely capable of distributing propaganda that holds no eternal truth but only temporary fiction.
Rest is a powerful weapon of warfare and you will not win a battle without utilizing it.
When life is too busy … that is the time when you need to rest.
When you are spent and weary … take some time for rejuvenating rest.
When you don’t know what to do and are frustrated by the demands of the day … you can always choose to rest.
When you choose to rest, you will find God in that sweet place. God abides fully and completely in an atmosphere of quietness and trust. When a believer enters into the joy of resting, God is able to bequest a victorious strategy and to give heaven’s opinion on every battle and every situation.
The commitment to rest is of such extreme importance and undeniable wisdom in the mindset of God, that He has actually set aside 1/7 of our earthly existence to be fully immersed in the miracle that only rest will accomplish.
No less than 14 percent of your life should be given to peaceful living, the shaking off of busyness and the dedication to simply breathing in His presence.
The miracle that occurs when an ordinary believer embraces the lifestyle of rest is that now you will be able to accomplish things in His strength that you could never accomplish in your own. You will now win battles that busyness would have caused you to abysmally lose. The benefit of rest and trust is that nothing will be impossible to you!
God does have a work for you to do but it is birthed in the factory of peace and is oiled with the service of righteousness. We work not from necessity but from trust. We accomplish great feats for the kingdom of God not in our own strength but in His shared strength.
“The work of righteousness shall be peace, and the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever” (Is. 32:17, MEV).
It’s time for you to take a rest! {eoa}
Carol McLeod is an author and popular speaker at women’s conferences and retreats, where she teaches the Word of God with great joy and enthusiasm. Carol encourages and empowers women with passionate and practical biblical messages mixed with her own special brand of hope and humor. She has written five books, including No More Ordinary, Holy Estrogen!, The Rooms of a Woman’s Heart and Defiant Joy! Her most recent book, Refined: Finding Joy in the Midst of the Fire, was released last August. Her teaching DVD, The Rooms of a Woman’s Heart, won the Telly Award, a prestigious industry award for excellence in religious programming. You can also listen to Carol’s “A Jolt of Joy” program daily on the Charisma Podcast Network. Connect with Carol or inquire about her speaking to your group at justjoyministries.com.
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