There’s a moment for all of us—sometimes early in adulthood, sometimes much later—when rest stops being something natural and becomes something we have to schedule. Instead of something built into the rhythm of life, it becomes a reward for surviving the week. We tell ourselves we’re resting when we collapse onto the couch or scroll for an hour, but deep down we know that isn’t the kind of rest our souls are aching for. And if we’re honest, many of us can’t even remember the last time we felt truly restored. Somewhere along the way, we drifted from the rest we were made for.

Scripture paints a radically different picture of rest than what most of us practice. In the very first pages of the Bible, before there was brokenness or busyness or burnout, God Himself rested. Not because He was tired, but because He was establishing a rhythm—a pattern woven into creation. Sabbath wasn’t invented as a recovery tool for exhausted humans. It was given as a gift, a sacred pause meant to remind us who God is and who we are. Jesus reinforces this in Mark 2:27 when He says, “The Sabbath was made for man.” Rest isn’t a limitation. It’s grace.

And yet, if we’re honest, we treat rest like a luxury. We keep pushing, keep producing, keep proving ourselves—then wonder why our souls feel thin. Jesus’ invitation in Matthew 11:28 cuts through all of that noise: “Come to Me, and I will give you rest.” True rest isn’t found in time off, or perfect schedules, or productivity hacks. It’s found in a Person. A rested life is not the result of getting everything under control—it’s the result of coming back to Jesus again and again until His pace becomes our pace.

But here’s the part we don’t like: rest requires trust. Psalm 127:2 says that God gives rest to His beloved, which means rest is less about ceasing work and more about releasing control. Stillness is not inactivity—it’s surrender. It’s choosing to believe that God can hold the world together while you sleep, while you stop, while you step away. Most of us don’t resist rest because we’re too busy. We resist it because we’re afraid of what might happen if we stop striving.

So the invitation for this week is simple: take one small step toward the kind of rest God designed you for. Not a major life overhaul, not a dramatic sabbatical—just one intentional practice. Maybe it’s a tech-free hour, a slow morning with Scripture, a walk without headphones, or the courage to say “no” to something that drains you. Let that small act become a ripple. Because rest isn’t about escaping life—it’s about being restored so you can step back into life with clarity, peace, and a heart aligned with the God who invites you to rest in Him.