Isaiah 55:10-11 As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

Words and promises from humankind in the world prove very fickle. People change their minds quickly. Today they will love you, and tomorrow they may hate you. So living our lives based on the promises of men is a big setup for failure and disappointment. One thing we can rest in is the Word of God. He is good on his promises, and he never disappoints. I have learned to trust God’s Word more and more as I grow in my knowledge of him, and I teach others to lean on his words and not man’s. God seems to love working in cycles, and one prominent cycle we observe in the Bible is the seven cycle; seven days in a week, seven-year Sabbaths, seventy years of captivity, etc. Doctors observe this seven cycle. They usually say, “A virus will run its course in seven days.” I guess God loves the number seven, and I am happy with that.

I love searching out the scriptures for God’s promises and staying on them until I see God move to answer those promises. One promise I love in the Bible is, “I have found your word, and it is health and healing to all my flesh” (Proverbs 4:22 NIV). And in the book of Isaiah, God specifically talks about the blessings one will enjoy if they consider resting as Holy. (Isaiah 58: 13- 14)

Learning to Rest

I have to admit there are still days when I feel guilty for taking moments to rest. Somewhere along the way, I believed the lie that if I wasn’t constantly doing something, I was wasting time.

Can anyone else relate?

The truth is, our bodies are wonderfully designed. They often give us signs that we need to slow down, breathe, and rest. Yet many of us ignore those signals until we have no choice but to stop. I recently came across a statement by Dr. Jay Winner, a family physician and stress expert with over two decades of experience, that really made me pause:

“Stress doesn’t only make us feel awful emotionally. It can also exacerbate just about any health condition you can think of.”

That is a sobering reminder. Chronic stress has been associated with or can worsen many health conditions, including:

• Heart disease
• Asthma
• Obesity
• Diabetes
• Headaches
• Depression and anxiety
• Gastrointestinal problems
• Cognitive decline
• Accelerated aging
• A higher risk of premature death

Reading that list made me stop and think. How often do we ignore the warning signs because we believe everyone else’s needs should come before our own?

As women, we often carry responsibilities that no one else sees. We care for our families, our work, our churches, and our communities. We keep giving, believing that resting can wait until everything is finished.

But what if God never intended us to live that way? The more I study Scripture, the more I see that God is not only concerned about what we accomplish. He is concerned about who we are becoming. Jesus often withdrew from the crowds to spend time with the Father. He made room for prayer, solitude, and renewal. If the Son of God practiced rhythms of rest and communion with the Father, perhaps we should pay attention.

I am learning that rest is not laziness. Rest is stewardship.

Taking time to pray, to breathe, to care for our bodies, and to renew our minds is not selfish—it is one way we honor the life God has entrusted to us.

Maybe today is an invitation to listen to what your body has been trying to tell you. Perhaps God is not asking you to do more. Perhaps He is inviting you to be still, receive His grace, and trust that caring for yourself is part of faithfully caring for others.

When we learn to rest in God’s presence, we are strengthened to live with greater wisdom, joy, and purpose. Because flourishing was always part of His design.

—Women of Courage