Embrace Rest

by Kristy Lee Photography

“Step out of the traffic! Take a long, loving look at me,

your High God, above politics, above everything.”

Psalm 46:10

Each Friday while my little girl is in her ballet class I have a forty-five-minute window, that my goal is to write solidly for as long as I can.

Finding the time to write and have quiet in my motherhood journey has been the most significant challenge. Just a few moments of peace. A little breath of calm before I go back to the constant negotiating and boundary keeping.

Recently, I walked into the cafe, after dropping my daughter at her dance class and reached into my bag and realised I’d left my laptop at home. I felt relieved. I took the beauty of a moment to myself, free of shoulds and expectations.

The funny thing is we all have the same amount of hours in a day. We all have the same amount of minutes in an hour, but we all spend them differently.

David challenges my attention when he shouts in Psalm 46: 10 “Step out of the traffic.”

Do you struggle with the culture of hustle in our society today?

Do you sometimes feel like you can never meet the expectations of your task-driven world?

I decided at that moment to extravagantly breathe in deep my long black and my berry muffin. Giving myself a break. I took a moment to feel the beauty of the sun shining through the rain clouds and music in my ears and the taste of strawberry raw. Worshipping my Creator in the midst of doing nothing. We were created to be human beings, not doing.

The rest notes in the music of our lives are the places that bring the most magnificent beauty.

Are you filling your days with so much noise that there is no rest in the orchestra of shoulds?

We are the composers of our every day.

Stop.

Step out of the traffic.

Breathe.

Notice the rising steam off your hot coffee.

Breathe in deep the rain that stings your skin.

And do nothing.

For a moment.

Nothing.

Rest.

Worship him with the sheer pleasure of rest,

And embrace slow.

Amanda Viviers