Not Everyone Gets a Day to Rest

My last post might have upset some folks.  They hear I have the ability to “take a day off” and they want to throw up – or throw stones at me.  I know.  I hear you!

Not everyone gets a day to rest.

It just isn’t possible when you have little kids running around from dusk to dawn.  I get that!  Believe me, I do!  I have six children.  I’ve been there, done that, got the grey hair and permanent bags under my eyes!  I know your pain!  I feel your plight!

I am in a season when all my children are in school.  The littlest ones take off out the door around 8:15 a.m.  And a sudden rush of silence invades my space.  I never thought this day would come, but it has!  And I am so grateful.  I thought the chaos and endless runny noses and napless days would never end.

There’s a poem my mother wrote.  She had ten children of her own.  She wrote it after we were all grown up, and it has blessed me a million times over.  Every time I feel like you might be feeling – that there is no rest for the weary – that these days of endless laundry, crumbs and spills on the floor, cries and whines, and rushing in and out the door trying to beat the incessant demands of the clock will never cease – my mother’s words encourage me and increase my patience.

Here’s what wisdom says – wisdom from a mother of ten children:

MOTHERHOOD by Shirley La Fave

I’ve loved my job, wanted none other

My job was just being a mother

I’ve wiped the tears and rears and noses

Accepted dandelions as if they’re roses

I get them up and get them dressed

Feed the crew and clean the mess

My hours were from dawn to dawn

But then, too soon, their youth is gone

No more the tracks of muddy feet

Now my house stays clean and neat

And if I’d known then what I know now 

I’d have loved it all much more somehow

 

Isn’t that encouraging?  I can’t tell you how many times I have wiped up spilled milk, scraped crusted cereal droppings that seemed glued to the floor, or scrubbed at red popsicle stains in the carpet, and repeated in my mind, I’ve loved my job, wanted none other…I’ve loved my job, wanted none other!  (With teeth gritted, I’d try to remember that one day I will miss these precious little droppings and handprints and muddy tracks… Yep.  Some. Day.)

We can look ahead to a day when all the craziness turns to calm.  We will miss the days when the kids were noisy and messy and crabby and kept us up all night vomiting on the cream carpet.  We will!  Mom said so.  And I think she’s right.  I think we will.

If you are one who cannot find space in your week for a Sabbath Rest Day, consider making a deal with your spouse for an hour or two on a weekend or snag an hour when he is home in the evening.

We need to take time for ourselves.  We need to step away and be refreshed, even if it’s for just a half hour.  Think of it as a sanity break – an investment that may be the saving of many lives!

I recall my breaks that Dave would give me back when we had infants and toddlers at home.  Often times, we’d get all the kids to bed, and then I’d be given the okay to step out for a bit.  Usually, by that time of night, I was too tired to go anywhere, so I’d just read on the couch until I fell asleep.

Sometimes I went to a coffee shop with my book.  Other times I would spend the time getting some shopping done.  (Though usually, I’d get to the store and my mind would go completely blank.  All those things I’d been thinking about picking up in the midst of my mania would have just vanished from my memory.  So I’d meander around and browse.  A little mindless meandering in stores can be restful, believe it or not.  And it’s better for the pocketbook.)

If I did manage to have some energy in the tank, I’d go for an evening run or a bike ride.  Often times, I’d get as far as the screen porch, plunk down on the couch, and hope everyone would think I had left the premises, so I could sit undisturbed for as long as possible.  The evening breeze through the screens and the quiet of the night would be all I needed to rest and refuel.

My point is, we will have times when taking a good portion of a day to rest isn’t possible.  I understand that.

The biblical command is that after six days of work there should be a day of rest.  I don’t think it matters to God which days we work and on which ones we choose to rest.  He just wants us to realize our need to rest – and on those Sabbath Days, we are to cease activity that is selfish, and look to be selfless in worship toward Him.  It is like spending a tithe – offering the first fruits of the week to the Lord.  And just as with financial tithing, we can trust God to bring blessings when we are obedient. His commands are never to harm us, but they are there for our good.

The word sabbath comes from the Hebrew shabat and it means “cessation” or to stop.

Stop.

I recommend you consider an hour a day if you can’t do a day each week.  Maybe it means 4 sessions of 15 minutes, where you sneak away to pray or read or listen to worship music.  I learned to play Christian radio often throughout the day.  I have been on my knees mopping floors while my laptop blurted an online sermon at me.  There are many ways to worship and pray even in the midst of accomplishing our daily otherwise mundane tasks.  And it helps feed the weary soul!  I also taught my kids to have quiet time, as well.  That was a huge help for me.  Having children who know how to entertain themselves quietly for good stretches of time is worth whatever it takes to get them there!

I arrange new puzzles, blocks, other manipulative toys, write-on/wipe-off boards, or coloring and picture books on the coffee table, and the kids gladly dive in to all the new and interesting things – keeping them engaged for good stretches of time.  (When I say “new” – I usually mean gently-used collections I’ve snagged up from rummage sales and resale shops, which I then stash away until the items are age-appropriate.  It’s like Christmas morning for the children, and it has given me many times of rest!  I also pull from this collection for long car rides.)

 If it is important to us, we will do it. 

We tend to do what is most important to us.  Once we realize the benefit to having some “Sabbath” breaks in our days and weeks, we tend to prioritize blocking out the time.  There are forms of rest that can come even in the midst of heavy demands.  When I feel buried in the swells of the tyranny of the urgent, you’ll find me reading Scripture or devotions while I wait in line at a drive-thru.  Like most busy moms, out of necessity, I have learned the wonderful art of multi-tasking.  To me, even a moment where I can step away, mentally, from the bustle, and read a verse, can fuel me.  Again, I have made a habit of turning on the laptop and listening to encouraging sermons (and sometimes convicting ones) while I sweep, mop and dust.  If it doesn’t seem possible for you to rest, ask God to show you how to set apart some time.  I trust He will answer this prayer that is according to His will.

I never want to be discouraging in my posts, so I apologize if yesterday’s message upset anyone.  I haven’t heard anything negative, but it dawned on me that there was a time when the suggestion of taking a day off would have caused me to scoff, spit and howl.  I totally know what it is to be buried in busy-ness and overwhelmed by the demands of life.

The sweet news is, to everything there is a season and a time to every purpose under heaven.  (Ecclesiastes…)  And though some say that God only gives us what we can handle, I disagree.  I believe God gives us far more than we can handle – but He never gives us more than He can handle.  This is why we need Him so desperately.

Lean on Christ’s energy.  He will see you through this tough season, and He will give you strength and patience as you seek Him for it.

As I closed in yesterday’s post with Matthew 11:28-30, I remind you again today to:  Go to Christ, all you who are weary and heavy burdened, and He will give you rest.  Cling to Him as an ox to the yoke…let Him pull you and your heavy load along through these tough days.  

He can and He will strengthen you and raise you up on eagle’s wings.  He is faithful and He will do it. (Isaiah 40:31 and 1 Thes. 5:24)

The LORD will guide you continually, giving you water when you are dry and restoring your strength. You will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever-flowing spring.  Isaiah 58:11