We all need rest. Even flowers.
I was shocked one morning when hiking, that some beautiful flowers lining the trail were all closed up! It looked weird to have their long green stems pushing up toward the sky but the flower itself was closed. Almost to say, "we're not awake yet".....or "sorry, closed for business". I really wanted to see their beauty as I started my hike. That didn't happen until later when I came down the trail and the sun was beaming. It was a beautiful sight. They lined up on both sides of the trail and almost saluted me as I walked by.
Certain plants, like poppies, close up at night to conserve energy in order to be open all day for the pollinating insects. They might also close up to protect themselves from freezing. This process is called "nyctinasty". This reminds me of US. All of us... moms and wives who are just too hard on ourselves to rest. Let's face it. We are our own worst critics! We are taking care of people 24/7 no matter what. Even when we are dog tired, we feel guilty if we let things go.
I was chatting with my friend this morning about the surprises in life. Things come up without expectation. We can't control the difficult roads.....when they start and when they end. It is OK to call it a day at 10am!!! It is OK to focus on the peace in our home.....the heart attitudes of our children.....the protection of our own minds.....and just be "closed for business". We cannot be all things to all people. We cannot juggle hard enough and long enough to make everything perfect. We have to show ourselves GRACE in this life. The same grace we would show to our friend, neighbor and family, we need to show ourselves.
My house is a mess and my Christmas tree is still up!! What??? Oh yeah....still up with lights on! But you know what? I don't care. I don't care because the last few weeks have been nutty. Our sinks backed up, lost our keys, hit a dog (that died), left our freezer door open (yes many things thawed out and are trash), backed into a parked car (major dent), and on and on. The nuttiness has allowed me to look at my days individually and see the blessing. I have had to show myself GRACE because if not, I would go crazy. The blessings have been abundant! In the same few weeks of crazy happening, wonderful things have happened too........The Loft last Sunday was amazing, The Dove interview went great, several coffee dates with encouragement and exhortation, working out with purpose, a beautiful Anniversary, my birthday, etc. So I choose to find the blessing, to find the GRACE and give myself REST.
Somedays, I am "closed for business"...and you too!
"For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven."
Ecclesiastes 3:1
I have a blog post in my 'drafts' titled 'The strength to rest' with a lot of the same content you wrote about above (chasing a toddler, keeping up with 2 teens- one who is about to graduate high school, etc.). Rest does not just happen- it is something we have to prayerfully purpose to do. God encourages us to rest (not be lazy but truly rest) so that we can be refreshed to be about the work He has called us to do! Thank you for this post Tre'ba- God Bless you friend
ReplyDeleteThank you Steph!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I need to be better at resting in the right way. :)
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