Rest, Restore, Restoration Copy
I love watching home renovation shows. One of my favorites is Rehab Addict, where Nicole Curtis buys old, condemned homes in run-down neighborhoods, restoring them to their “former glory” and making them livable again. She modernizes a few things but really tries to maintain the character and feel of the home when it was originally built. When Nicole buys a house, she typically goes in and cleans out all of the junk, tearing out the sheetrock, plaster, and anything else that cannot be salvaged, taking it all the way down to the studs. Once everything is stripped away, she can see the bones of the home, how it is structured, and creates a plan to rebuild and restore.
If you look at the word restore, it starts with rest. Rest has always been a word for me as I tend to be task-oriented and strive to get all the things done. God has to remind me to stop and rest.
READ: Psalm 23
When Pastor Sean spoke a couple of weeks ago, he talked about how God created the world in 6 days, and on the 7th day, He rested. Not that God was tired, but He was setting an example for us to follow and showing us that it is necessary for us to rest. God went even further by making it part of the 10 Commandments.
“Remember to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God. On that day no one in your household may do any work. This includes you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, your livestock, and any foreigners living among you. For in six days the Lord made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. That is why the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy.” - Exodus 20:8-11 NLT
In my eagerness to do all the things, I find myself like Martha, trying to make sure everything is perfect and trying to control everything I can control. But it's in these moments that God reminds me to stop, rest at His feet, and hear what He has to say.
I don’t know about you, but there have been times when God has had to stop me in my tracks and tear down everything I have built around myself, the situations I have experienced, and how I have let others define me, to get down to the root of the person HE created and designed me to be. Surrender requires rest, which is easier said than done. Sometimes, it doesn’t have to be a complete gut job, but there are rooms in our lives that we have neglected or allowed others to come in and decorate in a way God never intended.
JOURNAL: Write down any areas of your life that you have allowed yourself or others to define who or what you are that God is trying to restore to His design.
Rest is not just sleeping. It’s intentionally positioning our heart, our mind, and our body to sit in the presence of God and hear what He has to say about us, the situations we are walking through, and what He wants us to accomplish that day.
As we journey through the Sermon on the Mount, take the time to rest and really hear what God has to say to you. Allow Him to remove and restore anything that is not designed by Him.
PRAYER: God, thank you for the command and example of rest. In my day-to-day routine, help me stop and rest long enough to hear what YOU have to say about me. I surrender to Your perfect design for my life. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
If you look at the word restore, it starts with rest. Rest has always been a word for me as I tend to be task-oriented and strive to get all the things done. God has to remind me to stop and rest.
READ: Psalm 23
When Pastor Sean spoke a couple of weeks ago, he talked about how God created the world in 6 days, and on the 7th day, He rested. Not that God was tired, but He was setting an example for us to follow and showing us that it is necessary for us to rest. God went even further by making it part of the 10 Commandments.
“Remember to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God. On that day no one in your household may do any work. This includes you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, your livestock, and any foreigners living among you. For in six days the Lord made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. That is why the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy.” - Exodus 20:8-11 NLT
In my eagerness to do all the things, I find myself like Martha, trying to make sure everything is perfect and trying to control everything I can control. But it's in these moments that God reminds me to stop, rest at His feet, and hear what He has to say.
I don’t know about you, but there have been times when God has had to stop me in my tracks and tear down everything I have built around myself, the situations I have experienced, and how I have let others define me, to get down to the root of the person HE created and designed me to be. Surrender requires rest, which is easier said than done. Sometimes, it doesn’t have to be a complete gut job, but there are rooms in our lives that we have neglected or allowed others to come in and decorate in a way God never intended.
JOURNAL: Write down any areas of your life that you have allowed yourself or others to define who or what you are that God is trying to restore to His design.
Rest is not just sleeping. It’s intentionally positioning our heart, our mind, and our body to sit in the presence of God and hear what He has to say about us, the situations we are walking through, and what He wants us to accomplish that day.
As we journey through the Sermon on the Mount, take the time to rest and really hear what God has to say to you. Allow Him to remove and restore anything that is not designed by Him.
PRAYER: God, thank you for the command and example of rest. In my day-to-day routine, help me stop and rest long enough to hear what YOU have to say about me. I surrender to Your perfect design for my life. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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