Volume 10, Issue 18: Rest Habitually

I don't suppose God was overly tired after creating the world in six days. But He rested anyway on the seventh day. The second chapter of the book of Genesis records, "By the seventh day God had finished His work. On the seventh day He rested from all His work. God blessed the seventh day. He made it a Holy day because on that day He rested from His work, and all the creating God had done."

Just because we don't feel tired doesn't mean we shouldn't rest. A habit of rest week after week is what keeps our bodies and emotions in check. When we push ourselves to the limit and only pause to rest when we reach beyond exhaustion levels, our bodies don't recover very well.  But let's face it, if the demands on your life are anything like mine, you sometimes find yourself over-working consistently without necessarily planning on it.

That's where I found myself the last couple of weeks before Easter. We had just started working from home due to the COVID-19 constraints and I found myself busier than ever. I envied those who found themselves with extra time in their hands because I was drowning in work. From my bad experience with over-working last year, I had gotten myself into a rhythm of putting a halt on all work by 5pm. I got comfortable not carrying work home anymore.

But that all changed when I carried all my work home with me when COVID-19 reached my country. All my boundaries got marred and smudged. I stopped having my beloved reading and writing lunch breaks and 5pm got a new definition. But I thank God for the Easter break. An extended break has a way of bringing things into perspective. We get the extra time we need to reflect, ponder and formulate plans and strategies for the times ahead.

I am going back to my healthy routine of working normal hours from tomorrow, indulging in my lunch break rituals, enjoying the evenings with my family and going to bed on time. It's time to hit the reset button. It's okay to get off track but we don't have to stay off track. If you got sidetracked like me, join me in getting ourselves back into our work-life balance schedules before we get too ingrained in unhealthy patterns. Let's be sure to make rest part of our daily routine and slip back into resting habitually like we know we should.

For His Glory,

Lillian Chebosi