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Week 1 Abide and Rest
Day 1
Rest
Rest.
Rest. Rest in God’s love. The only work you are required now to do is give your
most intense attention to His still, small voice within.
–Madam Guyon[i]
First—ahead
of it all—rest in the Lord. Only as you find your rest in Him will you
have energy and strength for the tasks in your path. Shut out the world’s
influences and listen to Him. Listening is an act of your will, and is
more active than doing nothing. And yet, as you rest in His Presence,
physical rest will come as well.
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et’s begin our 100-day journey with seven days of rest. Mark 6:31 says, “Come away by yourselves to a
desolate place and rest a while...” Synonyms
for the word "desolate" are deserted, isolated, and bleak; and
yet we sense God's waiting presence in the silence; He waits for us to come
unto Him.
Make yourself a place
apart. Most of us can't randomly decide to rest for seven days, but understand
that spiritual rest does not require physical rest; if you are traveling this
path with me please recognize that getting up an hour early to spend time with
the Lord prior to a busy day is a viable way of finding rest in
Him. However, if you are able, clear as many responsibilities as possible
for this seven-day period so that physical and spiritual rest may
coincide.
In prayer, inquire of the Lord.
What duties and responsibilities would He have you set aside for this one week
of time? Your list will differ from mine. Don’t dismiss that first thought that
comes when you begin to pray; allow the Lord to grant you respite in ways you
may think are not possible. These are not rules to follow:
You are not under the law, with its
inexorable Do,
but under grace, with its blessed
Believe what Christ will do for you.
–Andrew Murray[ii]
Here are possible elements of these
seven days of rest:
1) Increase your intake of God's
Word (see appendix 1 for suggested weekly memory verses, and appendix 2 for a year through the Bible reading
plan).
2) Seek Him first--before
email, work projects, to-do lists, etc.; give your daily time with the Lord
priority above all else.
3) Limit screen
time. Consider a one-week fast from all unnecessary online activity, TV,
movies, etc. Discipline yourself to check social media sites only one time a
day, and for a limited amount of time.
4) Purpose to spend a regular early
morning time with the Lord in your own "desolate" place where
"...the only work you are required now to do is to give your most intense
attention to His still, small voice within.”
5) Rest this week from intense physical
exercise. If this is nearly impossible for you, faith in health habits may have
insidiously moved ahead of faith in the Lord's power to protect and preserve;
and you will need to repent. If you usually run/bike/swim each day, this week
cut your exercise to a daily fifteen minute stroll during which you observe and
are nurtured by the beauty of God's creation. For many people this
abstinence from working out amounts to a fast. Don't let anything—not even
your morning sit-ups—come before prayer, praise, Scripture, and meditation on
how you are to apply God's direction to your life. This is one week of
discipline that will provide physical and spiritual rest.
During this seven days we will
begin to exercise the discipline of putting the Lord first, before all else in
our lives. We will rest physically as much as possible, and spiritually by
committing the first segment of each day to His presence.
Pray: Dear Lord, teach me
the discipline of rest. Help me to run straight to Your arms when I am upset.
Melt my resistance to Your rule in my life as I abide in Your great love.
Amen.
~~~
…for while bodily
training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds
promise for the present life and also for the life to come.
1 Timothy 4:8
But seek first the
kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to
you.
Matthew 6:33
