Wednesday, September 7, 2022
We need rest, but everything seems to be in perpetual motion. Everywhere you look, everything is like runaway train. Even your body, your organs and cells are in constant work mode. Your heart beats an average of 2.5 billion times in your entire lifetime. But resting isn’t necessarily coming to a complete halt. That kind of rest ultimately, is death.
True rest is more about paying close attention, more than anything else. Rest is deliberate, a purposeful unplugging from constant stimulation, overthinking, and from the daily emotional responses to your lifestyle. Plopping in front of the TV is not rest, nor is scrolling the internet – that’s mindlessness. When you’re resting, you’re simply being. True rest is an inner phenomenon, a time to notice the automation of simply being alive. Sometimes the way we live diverts our attention to all sorts of uselessness. But rest is noticing, appreciating, and relishing in the peacefulness of being. That’s more useful than most of us realize.
Let yourself rest. Real rest is rejuvenation without stimulation. Rest is the exploration of “nothing.” Sit in a chair, look out of the window, and watch nature be alive. Close your eyes, listen to your breath and notice your own aliveness. Rest is a way of escaping the noise of doing. When the mind stops, and the emotions unwind, you’re left with a purity that other living creatures most likely do not experience. Noticing your aliveness is cleansing. It heals you from fear, stops you from giving into impulse, and it connects you to that which is higher and more eternal than the mind. Climb higher, by resting well. Constant noise can wear you down. Simple rest can restore and uplift. Take time to really rest today, it will do you a world of good.