Soul Rest

Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.

MATTHEW 11:28–30

Is it cruel to include a devotional week on rest for mamas who are sleepdeprived? Trust me, I thought about it. And my conclusion is, no. Rest is more than just sleep, although that is important too. Resting in Jesus is ceasing to strive. We trust in Him and not our good works to give us salvation. Resting in Jesus is giving Him our anxious thoughts. God is our rest because He is our provider. He knows our needs. He will not abandon us. Resting in Jesus is turning over burdens He doesn’t want us to carry. What burdens have you chosen? Is your burden a perfectly tidy home, a weight goal, a level of material comfort? Come to Him and take His yoke—His yoke is easy; our yokes are not.

God may not be asking you to do anything for Him right now except care for yourself and your baby. Your worth is not in your doing. It is in Him. Rest is available to us even on the days we are sleep-deprived. It is a rest rooted in His nature: He is gentle and humble. We are often harsher taskmasters than gentle Jesus. Dear one, come to Him and let Him untie the unnecessary loads. See where He wants to give your soul rest.