“Come Away with Me” by Anna Babin

The past couple of weeks I’ve been feeling very drained. I have found myself feeling groggy and sleepy throughout the day, and in general have just felt a little out of it. I may or may not have been taking naps almost every day when I get home from work! It has affected how productive I am at work, how gracious (or not) I am in my responses to others, and how much energy I have when I come home to be intentional (or again, not) with my husband.

This last Monday was one of my hardest days out of the past few weeks. That morning I just so happened to read Matthew 6:14-32, but it didn’t fully sink in. I went through and reread it again this morning, and these verses really stuck out to me:

“The apostles returned to Jesus and told Him all that they had done and taught. And He said to them, ‘Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.’ For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves.”
-Matthew 6:30-32

Just prior up to Jesus telling His disciples to go to a desolate, quiet place to rest, Mark says that Jesus had just sent His disciples out two by two with nothing but sandals, a staff, and authority over demons (no big deal right?). They ended up casting out many demons and healing many people, however, shortly thereafter, John the Baptist was beheaded. After the disciples buried his body they returned to Jesus to tell him what had happened and all that they had done and taught. Jesus then responded telling them to come away by themselves to rest.

Huh. I just “happened” to read that during the time that I needed rest the most!! I’m thankful for how “in-the-details” our God is, and that He is Sovereign even over the Scripture I read on a given day.

I love how well Jesus knows us, and I love how He responds to us. When we are following His will and fighting against the powers of this world (which we encounter every day whether we realize it or not), He knows we get tired. So, instead of trying to push us to go! go! go! like our culture tells us we should do, Jesus calls us to rest. He knows the best way for us to rest as well… It’s not by getting on Social Media, oddly enough, despite how easily I get entangled in it… it’s going to a quiet, desolate place, and truly resting. That really is so true for me! Whenever I am surrounded by God’s creation, whether that be the ocean, a lake, the mountains, or the woods, I tend to feel so much more at ease with the world! Side note – it says that the disciples went away in “the boat, to a desolate place…” I knew I always felt more rested in the water!! 😉 Another side note – your resting place doesn’t necessarily have to be someplace exotic, it’s just wherever you’re able to find peace and quiet.

Lately, I have been convicted of not taking a Sabbath day. God makes it clear throughout Scripture that He designed us to work 6 days, and rest the 7th. In Exodus 31 He tells Moses that above all, Moses should observe the Sabbath; and that it would be a sign that Moses knows it is the Lord that sanctifies him. That’s pretty neat that the Sabbath is also used to remind us that nothing in this world makes us holy besides the Lord Himself!! God also says that observing the Sabbath should be a sign to the people of Israel that God worked 6 days, and that on the seventh He rested and was refreshed. (Exodus 31:17). He rested on the 7th day after creating the Earth (and remember, He is God!!!) as an example to us. Hebrews 4:9-11 says:

“So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from His. Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.”

Are you finding yourself out of energy? I want to encourage you to look back at the past month or two and see all that God has enabled you to do through His Spirit! Have you come to Jesus to share with Him and thank Him for what He has done through you? Well, my friend, now He wants you to go to a quiet place and rest for awhile. Another verse I’m sure you all know but we can’t hear enough is when Jesus says:

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

I know that most of us know in our heads that we need to rest, but I pray that knowledge moves from our heads to our hearts and out through our hands. I pray that we take it more seriously!
I have found that the more intentional I am in resting, the more ready I am to go out and be used by Jesus. He fills our cup, and He is the source of our rest.

P.s. I don’t know about you, but a nice hike in the woods this weekend is sounding pretty nice 🙂

Love,
Anna

Anna Babin is a Birmingham native who moved to the Rocket City after marrying her husband, Michael. She is blessed to work at Choose Life of North Alabama, where she gets to love on women facing unexpected pregnancies. Her passions include studying God’s word, blogging, public speaking, working out, gardening, and drinking coffee. Check out her blog at: www.LifeAsALight.com

Tags: Anna Babin, come away with me, jesus, Our City On A Hill, rest, Soul Food