Yesterday was our granddaughter Alexandria's 17th birthday, which alone is enough reason to give thanks. She is a delightful young woman, beautiful inside and out, blessing everyone she meets with words of encouragement, and a listening heart. She will spend the summer on the mission field in Uganda working with a young woman from Park church. Are we proud of her? You bet!
For me, the day was spent in Syracuse for Annual Conference, then the ride home with pastor Joe. We were both thankful that the rainy weather predicted for both the ride out and the ride back didn't materialize, and the helmet intercom set Linda bought me for Christmas worked perfectly. Though separated by up to a quarter mile at times, we were able to talk about ministry issues the entire way home. The weather was perfect, and we repeatedly gave thanks for safety and the joy of riding.
This morning I read an article about praying the Scriptures, then read in Hebrews 4:11 about striving to enter God's rest. It's an odd phrase, and is not accidental. How does one strive for rest? On the surface, it doesn't make sense. But as I meditated on it, and offered this text as a prayer, I thought about how often I've imagined I could almost saunter my way into God's presence, or lazily read the Scriptures expecting to meet the Lord. God's rest doesn't work that way. This afternoon, Linda and I were sitting on our back deck talking. We had been there about five minutes when she jumped up, grabbed a broom, and started to sweep off the debris that accumulated through the night. "You'd hardly believe I did this just yesterday," she exclaimed. The deck clean, she sat down and said, "It is so hard for me to sit. I start reading my Bible, and see something that needs to be done. It takes me forever to just sit down and focus."
I don't have the same eye for clutter, but I understand the problem. Entering into rest, especially God's rest, is never easy. We are easily distracted, and there is the Enemy of our souls, constantly at work doing whatever he can to keep us from resting in Christ, even if it's as innocuous as sweeping a deck. But if we don't persist, if we don't strive to enter, we can never discover the deep soul-rest God wants us to experience. I can't just slide comfortably into the Presence of God. There are too many barriers in this old world. That Presence is a place that must be fought for, with all the energy and strength we have. To do less dooms us to a restlessness that is characteristic of this lazy, distracted world. I am thankful tonight for God's rest, and pray for strength and grace to strive mightily enough to enter in.
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