Ever prayed about something asking God for guidance, wisdom, provision, healing, or protection only to find yourself struggling to believe he will help?
I’ve been thinking a lot about what it means to trust God. The verse, It’s impossible to please God without faith has me pondering life from God’s point of view. This morning I was thinking about the children of Israel and how God lead them out of Egypt, only to realize I’m a lot like them “slow to take God at his word.”
God offered them the Promised Land and rest from their enemies. He said he would go before them and defeat their enemies so that they could live securely in the land he had given them. All they had to do was trust him and go into the land and he would protect them so that they could settle in the land and live securely. They forfeited this rest because they refused to trust God.
Jesus shares with us that he has provided rest for us too in Matt.11:28-30 (read). What a beautiful image! He calls out to people who are weary from trying to pull loads that are too heavy for them. He is obviously not speaking of physical loads but rather the burden of living in this broken world by our own inadequate resources. He says that he is able to pull this load because he is strong, and he invites us to come to him. Christ offers ‘rest,’ not in the (next) life only, but also in this life. Rest from the weight of sin, care and worry, from the load of daily anxiety and foreboding.
The key to entering God’s rest is faith, believing in his promise of provision in every area of our lives. Faith involves ceasing from your works and efforts. It requires passivity in the sense that you stop depending on your own resources and depend instead on God’s resources. Faith is saying: “I cannot do this only God can do this.” We instinctively rely on our own efforts and resources instead of on God’s but I challenge you to choose to depend on God!!
When we find ourselves at the end of our ropes we realize we can’t change the impossible in ourselves that we find ourselves Crying out to God, help! Our eyes are open and we no longer want to forfeited God’s transforming presence in your life by saying I don’t trust you” in a specific area. God’s Word searched your heart and motivated you to cry out to God,” I have not been trusting you, God. I have been calling you a liar. I’ve allowed the situation to appear bigger than you. I want to trust you again.” It’s the love of God pulling you exposing your need and motivating you to humbly entrust yourself to God.
Jesus is our High Priest, and that therefore personally depending on him is how we enter into God’s rest. All you have to do is come to God through Jesus and ask him for help, believing that he is willing and able to give it you. The more regularly you do this, the more you experience his undeserved help, and the more humbly confident you become that he will always help you. This is entering God’s rest and it is a life of peace and hope and even joy in the midst of life’s storms. Let’s all enter this rest today and learn how to dance in the rain. 
Love you all,
Amy
