| Our Christian history and tradition is just full of gold: stories, people, traditions and prayers that have inspired and nurtured peoples’ faith and helped them on their walk with Jesus through life. Here is one such prayer…. |
 This prayer is taken from St Augustine of Hippo’s book Confessions. Not our St Augustine, but the North African theologian of the 5th Century. He was a person who constantly sought after truth. This led him to unique insights into his own, as well as human character, and the culture and philosophy of his day, and Scripture and God. Much of Western theology and wider culture can find its heritage in St Augustine’s teachings.This prayer is testament to his depth of understanding. A prayer so simple and short, yet so profound and rich, disciples have spent lifetimes reflecting on it. It encapsulates what it means to be human. We were made to rest! This prayer reveals that one of the keys to discipleship, to a life lived to the full, is rest. I think this is a lesson we need to learn now more that ever. As some of us start working from home, the place we commonly find rest, it can become increasingly hard to find space for rest. And it can be hard to find rest as we are bombarded by news of Covid-19 and the lack of stability for the future. It does not take much before we feel restless and uneasy within ourselves. But, if we are courageous enough to look closer at ourselves, we might find there are deeper questions about who we are and what we ought to do that are the source of this restlessness. According to this prayer we have these questions unanswered, and are restless and uneasy because we are disconnected from our original purpose; we were made for God. Made to take joy and delight in Him, as He takes joy and delight in us. Made to live for and with Him. This is true rest. To rest in God we need to understand His opinion of us. To understand this I invite you to read Matthew 3:16-17 and you will find that we are God’s Children with whom He is well pleased. You might also want to read 1 Corinthians 13 and replace the word “love” with the word “God.” You might also want to mediate on the fact that God became human, dwelt with us, experienced all that we experience and then died for us, and offers us the gift of eternal life. You might also want to reflect on the fact that God knows you better than you know yourself, yet still wishes to make His home inside you through His Holy Spirit. In God there is perfect love, safety and acceptance. So what practical steps can we take to live in and from His rest? At it’s most basic it is about doing those things which help us to build a deeper loving relationship with God, and making them routine! It is important to remember we are all made unique and different, and there is no one sizes fits all for finding rest in God. You might already know the ways in which you connect with God, but if you are struggling here is a resource and questionnaire to help you find insight into the way God has made you. We all need routine. Just like a married couple need to be intentional about spending time together, with daily catch ups and regular date nights, to keep the relationship healthy, we need to make spending quality time with God a priority in our days, weeks, months and years. So next time you notice yourself feeling restless, say this prayer and be open to what God wants to reveal to you about how He has made you and how you might find rest in Him. |