Part 3 – Rest and Renewal
- Paul Abrahams
- Sep 7
- 2 min read
For this third part of our 5 part series on mental and spiritual health, let’s talk about rest!
We live in a culture that celebrates exhaustion. When someone asks “How you doing?” Think of our go to answers. “Busy” or “running on empty” or “even exhausted” are standard answers we use in western culture.
Busyness is worn like a badge of honor, while rest is quietly dismissed as laziness or weakness. From the very beginning, God rested on the seventh day, not because He was tired, but to weave rest into the fabric of creation itself.
Rest as Worship
The Sabbath command in Exodus is not primarily about rule-keeping; it is about relationship. God was teaching His people to trust Him by laying down their tools, their work, and their striving for one day. Rest became an act of worship, a declaration that “man does not live by bread alone” (Deut. 8:3). When we rest, we confess with our bodies that the world is not upheld by our effort, but by His hand.
Dallas Willard once said, “Hurry is the great enemy of spiritual life in our day.”
Rest is the antidote. It slows us down enough to listen, to notice, to breathe. Without it, our souls become thin, brittle, and reactive. With it, we are renewed from the inside out.
Renewal of Body, Mind, and Spirit
Rest is not just sleep (though many of us need more of that too). True biblical rest restores every layer of our being.
Physical: Our bodies are temples of the Spirit, designed to flourish with rhythms of work and recovery.
Mental: Quiet reflection and Sabbath rhythms untangle our anxious thoughts.
Spiritual: Time in God’s presence reorders our loves, reminding us who He is and who we are.
When Jesus invited the weary to come to Him, He promised not just lighter schedules but “rest for your souls” (Matt. 11:29). His rest is the deep renewal that goes beyond a weekend nap; it is the restoration of our identity in Him.
Practicing Rest
Rest rarely happens by accident. In a world bent on constant productivity, it must be chosen. That might mean setting boundaries with work, creating space for silence and prayer, or even rediscovering joy in simple pleasures like a walk, music, or unhurried conversation with a friend. These moments, though small, are seeds of renewal.
When we begin to practice rest, we learn that we are not machines but beloved sons and daughters. Renewal comes not in what we achieve, but in who we are becoming in Christ. Not in what we do, but who we are!
For discussion:
What do your current rhythms of life reveal about your trust in God—are you living from rest or from exhaustion?
Which part of you—body, mind, or spirit—is most in need of renewal right now?
What intentional practice of rest could you introduce this week to begin cultivating a deeper rhythm of Sabbath? (Hint: Pause App is great)
For our extra credit this article let’s go back to the Nooma series that came out 15 or so years ago:
