As summer is over and we are into the Fall routines of school and work, we need to be reminded that is not only ok, but important that we rest. Years ago I remember proudly displayed on a home refrigerator an award the young son had been given in school:”THE BEST RESTER!” We don’t honor “resters”, usually the accolades go to the driven. But a recent article in the Denver Post by Electra Draper, reprinted in the September 5th Star Tribune, calls us to rest, here is a brief summary of quotes from that article:
- “The brain is a machine that needs downtime.”
- “Americans have become so averse to being unproductive that many have trouble waiting…..”
- “Psychologists, ministers, scientists and even politicians are urging revival of the ancient concept of Sabbath.”
- “Chronically stressed people…desperately seek permission to rest.”
- “God gave permission for an entire day of rest every week. It’s not just permission it is a commandment.”
- “Flood the brain with too much information and activity in this region suddenly drops off. This center for smart thinking not only doesn’t increase it performance, it checks out.”
- “But when people take time to quiet down the left brain, to forget about to-do lists and to unplug from more input….solutions often percolate up from subconscious.”
- “The History of creativity is filled with stories like this…a few days of not thinking about a problem, then the answer simply appears.”
So if you need permission, it is okay, you can take a break! Or as the Psalm writer said “Be Still and Know that I am God!”
