Musings on Marriage

Tag: Rest

Photosynthesis and Rest

Dear Daughters,

It’s a beautiful time of year to arrive back in the colorful state of Michigan.  After being here for almost a month, my eyes never tire of the brilliant yellow, radiant red and every foliage shade in between.   Some days the skies are blue, sometimes gray, yet the leaves brighten up even a dreary rainy day of clouds.

Moving is hard work, I don’t care what anyone says.  Packing up, making decisions, saying good-bye and driving cross country is a challenge.  Some days tempers flare, misunderstandings erupt, and differences of opinion on which stuff is important and which is not.  A few days ago someone told me the cardinal rule for her and her husband is to let go of anything said 30 days before and 30 days after a move – which sounds quite sensible at this point.

So now we’re here and still many decisions need to be made, accounts need to be opened, learning where the stores are – still plenty to think about – yet the deadline is over, the boxes wait patiently to be opened and emptied.  There is now rest of sorts.  Not total and complete rest, but rest in a renewal sort of way.  There is family to reconnect with, new friends to make, relationships to deepen, which is in some ways the same, yet different from our Idaho way of life.

A few days ago, I was reading about the miracle of photosynthesis.  I confess I don’t remember much from my science classes decades ago, but I do remember the word, and having something to do with leaves changing color in autumn. 

Apparently, during the winter there isn’t enough water and light for producing food, so the trees take a rest.  As they do, the green chlorophyll disappears from the leaves revealing bits of yellow and orange that have been there all along.  We just can’t see those colors in the summer because they are covered up by the green.

I find it fascinating how bright and beautiful colors come only when efficiency shuts down. 

Shutting down. 

Resting.

Many people in our society view productivity as the only way to show our worth, prove we are capable of earning our way.  Demonstrate that we are worth the air we breathe, verify the validity of our existence here on the planet. 

Jesus always took time to rest. In fact, thousands of years ago God commanded that we rest one day a week.  How gracious. He knows our humanity is not able to keep on going and going and still be able to create, restore and renew. 

Some of my most healing times have come when I rest.  Simply laying on the couch, chatting with a friend, reading a book, journaling.  It is only then, when I slow down, ask God for wisdom and listen to His voice, that I can be revived.  It is true that much of my resting time comes uninvited, some days I have no choice, yet my most renewing times have come when my activity comes to a halt.

Unless we take time to sit in silence, ponder the big picture and seek God’s wisdom, we will continue to be busy busy busy, yet feel more ragged, drained and critical.

Remember to rest, let your productivity lessen, and allow the beautiful fall colors to be seen in you.

Love, Mom

Lie Down and Rest

Dear Daughters,

We arrived in Michigan a week ago, traveling four days from our Southern Idaho dwelling.  Everything here is green, all shades of beautiful lush greens – millions of trees, thick dark grass, luxurious rolling pastures.  As we were driving up U.S. 31 enjoying the spring-time greenery I thought of this verse from Psalm 23,

He makes me lie down in green pastures.

As you remember, Jesus calls Himself the Good Shepherd, which means we are compared to sheep in a metaphorical sense.  Being equated to sheep is not necessarily a compliment because sheep are kinda stupid, they quickly stray, are quite dependent on others and easily frightened.

In order for sheep to lie down in peace they have need of a few important requirements.  The first one is freedom from fear.  Because sheep have a herd mentality, they are skittish and easily agitated.  If even a little jack-rabbit hops from behind a bush and one startled sheep runs in fright, it can cause the entire flock to bolt into a stampede –the rest not even looking to see what caused the ruckus. 

We too are easily carried away by fear if someone speaks terror or dread – whether it be true or false, real or imagined.  It’s so easy to run with the herd, getting caught up in a mob mentality, simply reacting to the running of those around us.

Life is hazardous, unpredictable; no one knows what fears and anxieties any moment will bring.  Usually it is the unexpected and unknown that throw us into a panic.  Often our first impulse is to run from the harsh complexities of life – just like the sheep.

But if we look up, we’ll see our Good Shepherd waiting for us to turn to Him, desiring that we rest and not run.  Admitting we cannot do life well on our own, he brings peace, calm and serenity – even in the midst of a terrible, horrible, no-good very bad day.

As I grow older, I am finally learning that no amount of worry, control or angst ever helped any problem I had.  It only caused fear and dread.  For years I tried to solve problems on my own, figure out and rely on my own wisdom, but rarely experienced the peace Jesus promised.

Why do we always think we can change people and our circumstances? Why is it so difficult to rest, to trust God to do his work in his time? When will we ever give up and relinquish our ambitions to do God’s work for him?

Only when we choose to rest.

Another source of fear from which a shepherd delivers his sheep is rivalry, cruel competition and tension within the flock.  In the animal kingdom there is an established order of dominance, better known as a pecking order with chickens, a horning order with cattle, and a butting order among sheep. 

Usually a domineering, arrogant old ewe will be the boss of a flock.  She maintains her position by butting and driving other ewes or lambs away from the best grazing.  Then in turn they will use the same tactics of butting and shoving around those who are lower than they on the totem pole.

Remember those days at school when kids played King of the Mountain?  The game is probably outlawed by now, but I remember well when some strong kids would go up on a hill, others who were stronger would climb up, trying to shove and push them out of the way…

Well, I was driving around a few weeks ago and I saw the cattle version of the game, only in dairy corals it becomes Queen of the Manure Pile. 

When there’s friction in the flock, the sheep cannot lie down in rest because they always have to be standing up to defend their rights and be on the lookout for safety.  They feel the need to constantly be on alert, never able to let down their guard for fear of losing out on food and safety. 

But as past-shepherd Phillip Keller says,

…one point that always interested me very much was that whenever I came into view and my presence attracted their attention, the sheep quickly forgot their foolish rivalries and stopped their fighting.  The shepherd’s presence made all the difference in their behavior.

Somehow, when the guy in charge, on a much higher status than the sheep, comes on the scene, they forget the silly scuffling and struggle for status and lie down.  Contentment and peace within the flock ensue. 

How much that scene sounds like us humans.  We try to appear as if we have it all together, put on that toothy smile and strike a confident pose, yet still we feel the need to prove ourselves – to others as well as to us.  But when we keep our eyes on our Good Shepherd, we know we are on even ground with everyone else, that without the grace of God we would be lost – a ship without a rudder, the proverbial hamster on a wheel going round and round yet arriving nowhere.

When my eyes are on my Master, they are not on those around me. This is the place of peace, says Keller.

Jesus is so kind, so merciful to make us lie down in green pastures.  On our own we would never do it because we’re too busy doing stuff.  It’s only when we lie down and rest, trust him for tomorrow, and give thanks for what he is doing today, that we are content being in the silence of his presence.I have laid in green pastures more than I would like, but looking back I see it was only in this quiet, surrendered, helpless pose that He was able to get my attention on Him and off myself.

Lie down, look at your Shepherd and be at rest.

Love, Mom

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