Rest

Truly my soul finds rest in God;

my salvation comes from him.

Truly he is my rock and my salvation;

he is my fortress, I shall never be shaken,

Yes, my soul, find rest in God;

my hope comes from him.

Trust in him at all times, you people;

pour out your hearts to him,

for God is our refuge.

Psalm 62.1,2,5,8

I want to study more what it means that our rest is in God. What does this look like practically? How much should we pursue rest in reading a novel, watching a film, going on holiday etc? Here are some very sketchy thoughts:

I suppose the point is, do these ways of finding rest- which are good- become over-desires in our lives? So it's good, for example, to want time alone sometimes but does that become an idol for me? Am I pursuing it too much? Is it affecting my mood, behaviour and attitude to others if I don't get that time alone? If I feel resentment to those who do get it or annoyance towards those who prevent me from getting alone time then that must be a sure sign that it has become an idol or over-desire in my life.

If these good things are my ultimate rest, they're going to fail, leave me dissatisfied and empty, always wanting more. If, on the other hand, I acknowledge these are good but not best it will help me relax about pursuing them and help me to pursue rest in God. What does that look like? The Psalmist is saying that we can rest in God because our salvation comes from him. If ultimately I know I don't need to earn my salvation, be good enough, that will be restful- I don't need to worry what people think of me, or about maintaining my reputation, or about doing enough for God to be pleased with me. I can serve God with energy and joy knowing my salvation comes from him. Salvation and rest are very closely linked in Psalm 62. God is my rock, my fortress, my salvation, I shall never be shaken. I can pour out my heart to him- resting in the fact that he knows it already, he won't be shaken by what I say to him. He is my refuge- a place of safety and rest.