Get Some Rest

READ: GENESIS 2:2; 1 KINGS 19:1-8

"There will be a test over the material later this week,” Ashley heard the professor say as her class ended. Will I even have time to study for that test? she wondered.

She was taking college classes while in high school and working part-time to pay for them. Just as she felt the stress close in on her, her friend Ryan caught up with her in the hallway. “Ashley, wait up. I’ll walk you to your next class,” he offered.

Ashley tried not to show how stressed she was, but Ryan figured it out. “You’re working all week. You don’t think you’ll have time to study for this test, do you?”

When Ashley nodded, Ryan asked, “How about we get coffee after school and quiz each other on the material?”

“Count me in,” said Ashley.

Later that afternoon, Ryan quizzed Ashley at the coffee shop. But her eyes kept closing.

“History records dictate that...Ashley is asleep from exhaustion,” Ryan said, laughing lightly as he touched her arm to wake her up.

“Huh...What? Did I seriously fall asleep? Sorry about that.”

Ryan finally asked her what was wrong. Ashley admitted she was having trouble keeping up with the demands of classes and said she had no one to lean on.

“You’ve got me, Ash. I’m always here for you. If you really need rest, go to sleep early tonight. God can give you rest too, like it says in Matthew 11:28.”

As Ashley studied later that night, Ryan’s kind words and the verse he had mentioned kept coming back to her: “Come to me, all of you who are weary...and I will give you rest.”

She let the words sink in, praying, Lord, if I’m going to pass this test, I need rest. Please fill me with Your peace. As she finished praying, she felt calmer. She closed her books and finally got some sleep. • Alexis Wohler

• Sometimes it feels like everything in the world depends on us. How does it bring you peace knowing that your life depends on Jesus, not you?

• God created us to need rest, which is why He gave us the Sabbath. What are some ways you can practice intentional rest in your own life?

• Who can you talk to when you feel overwhelmed and exhausted?

Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28 (NLT)