I’m a doer, a maker, a check-list tackler. Any time I’m sitting down for more than a few minutes, I immediately think of something that needs to be done that I really should be doing instead of sitting.

Sound familiar? (Please tell me I’m not the only one?!)

So when my chronic illness flared up last month, to the point that I couldn’t be on my feet for more than a few minutes a day for two whole weeks, things got really hard for me. I had to ask others to do things that I felt I should be able to do myself. I had to accept that help and accept that my family knew that I couldn’t do it for myself. I had to rest—and it wasn’t easy.

But over these past weeks, God has really been speaking to me on the importance of rest, what it really is, and how we should be viewing it.

What Is Rest?

Our human view of rest is usually one of sleeping or laying around and not doing anything, which usually leads to a negative perception of rest. That in resting, we are essentially being lazy.

Instead, we need to view rest from a Biblical perspective. If God thought it important for Himself to rest, and for the Israelites to rest, wouldn’t it make sense that He expects us to rest too?

Resting isn’t just “taking it easy,” it’s essentially taking a break to recharge for our next task—which we can’t do adequately if we aren’t rested enough.

But What Is Active Rest?

The Hebrew language has several words that mean rest. Two of them are shabbat, which means “to stop”, and nuach, which means “to settle in where you have stopped.” What I found interesting was the fact that while shabbat is a noun, nuach is a verb, and to me, a verb implies action. Often, the word nuach is used in the Bible to describe the Spirit of God “resting” over a person or place; unmoving, yet full of power and energy.

I had never before considered the fact that one could be in action while resting! This got me seriously thinking of ways that I could nuach in my time of forced rest. What could I do to be spiritually active while physically resting?

Sometimes we really do need to completely stop, other times, we just need to take a break and put our focus elsewhere. Resting, yet still “active.”

Ways You Can Actively Rest

Pray

If you struggle with chronic illness too, then I don’t have to tell you how sometimes you’re in too much pain to do anything but rest. But even in those times of pain, when all we really want to do is fall asleep to have a break from that pain, we can still pray.

Prayer strengthens our connection to and relationship with God, thereby strengthening us in the process. Also, I’ve found that praying for others’ needs helps tamper down the often overwhelming anxieties of my own problems. If you can’t do anything, you can still pray!

Read/Listen to the Bible

Sometimes the things that are forcing us to rest can also lead to difficulty concentrating, so I know this one may be difficult at times. But even if you only read and meditate on one or two verses, that can be enough to let God’s word seep into your soul, giving you the strength to make it through.

Worship

Choosing to take the time to praise and worship God for who He is and what He has done for us can make a HUGE difference in our outlook. The peace, joy, and overall positivity that this can settle on us is very powerful. Worshiping God through even one song has often been what has helped me through some of the darkest times in my life, so I can say with certainty that if you can do this, you should do this. Yes, you are going through a rough time right now, but He is right there with you and has promised to NEVER leave you. That alone is enough to praise Him for!

Encourage Others

In 2 Corinthians 1:4, it basically says that when God comforts us through our difficulties, we are better able to comfort others through theirs. Use your struggles to bring Him glory, you never know who might be touched, uplifted, and encouraged by it.

Takeaway

I hope that each of you know that it’s ok to rest when you need to and that you don’t have to just sit and twiddle your thumbs. Resting can be a God-honoring, life-giving “task” if we allow it to be. So, even if you aren’t sick or struggling and simply need a breather, make it intentional, make it productive, make it active.