“A long time
afterward, when the Lord had given rest to Israel from all their surrounding
enemies, and Joshua was old and well advanced in years, Joshua summoned all
Israel… and said to them, ‘…You have seen all that the Lord your God has done
to all these nations for your sake, for it is the Lord your God who has fought
for you.’” –Joshua 23:1-3 ESV
The Lord is the one who fights for us, and the Lord is the
one who gives us rest. It’s tempting for us to say, “I’ve worked hard and I’ve
earned a rest,” but that doesn’t seem to be the model Scripture lays out. The
Ten Commandments indicate that the Sabbath is intended to remind us that in
Creation God worked for six days and then rested. Throughout the Bible we are reminded
that God is the one who creates, destroys, saves, and redeems. Even the good
works that we do are those “which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk
in them” (Ephesians 2:10).
Our lives would be much more restful if we fully believed
that God is the one at work and that it doesn’t depend on us to keep the world
running. Yes, we have a role to fill, but God can still accomplish His purposes
while we’re sleeping, waiting, or enjoying time off with the family. If we
don’t get enough rest, there is likely to come a day when we are forced to rest
due to illness or injury.
So as we approach God in prayer, may we remember and be
thankful for all the work that God has done and is doing on our behalf, and may
we learn to trust Him more for what He will do around us, in us, and through
us. We can rest in His promises, “For it is God who works in you, both to will
and to work for His good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13).
