Rest

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Most of you will agree with that we don’t always get as much rest as we should. No matter, at home or at work the days seem shorter and the to-do list longer. Rest is very important in life. The first mention of rest in the Bible is on the second chapter of Genesis, on the seventh day after God finished the work he was doing he rested. Interestingly the text does not say that God had to rest because he was tired, but says that he rested.

If God will not grow tired or weary, Isaiah 40:28, why did He rest after the creation? A possible explanation is that even though God does not get tired, we do and He wanted to model the practice of stopping what we are doing for rest and reflection. Throughout the first chapter of the Bible God stops and reflects after each act of creation and his critique is always positive: Good, good, and very Good.

Reflection is an integral element of rest because it requires stopping what we are doing to think about it. Doing something we like can be refreshing and restful. Paulo Freire, the great Brazilian educator state that praxis is “reflection and action upon the world in order to transform it”.
 
Rest is an active state of mind, body and soul restoration, not necessarily an act of doing nothing. There is something special in quietness, calmness and reflection which recharges, energizes and restores. God create the Sabbath, the day of rest so we can enjoy His presence and find rest for our body, mind and soul. Jesus said:   “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:27-29.

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