Moving Without Motivation
I feel like the last few weeks, and if I’m honest, the next few weeks, is just me running on fumes. I’m not sure if it’s graduate school’s finals and papers, work, other busyness, or just a lag in brain power, but I just do not have any motivation. I feel a little bit like I am just floating through life at the moment. There is one truth I am holding onto.
The Lord provides rest and grace in His Word.
“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light,” (Matthew 11:28-30).
I think sometimes we equate rest with inactivity and inactivity with negative connotations. I know I do. I can usually feel guilty when I am lacking in the productivity department.
But God doesn’t want us to work our way into His favor. And more than that, it’s impossible for us to.
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast,” (Ephesians 2:8-9).
God’s grace has done all of the work for us; the only necessary part is our faith. Everything else follows as a response to his love and grace. All of our works apart from this faith in His grace is pointless and worthless, at least when it comes to the Lord’s love and blessings.
“All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away,” (Isaiah 64:6).
We know that every good and perfect thing comes from God. Rest is one of His perfect promises. He lets us rest in His perfection because He loves us. Why should we work ourselves to death when it can’t bring life?
Yes, good works are good. Working and being productive is good. But so is rest. Whenever we run out of motivation and self-discipline (and we always will), our autopilot response should be to rest. Not rest in our own track record or successes, but in all that He gives to us.
REST IS GIVEN. He gives us what we need and what we desire.
“And he said, ‘My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest,’” (Exodus 33:14).
“It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep,” (Psalm 127:2).
Even God rested.
“And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation,” (Genesis 2:2-3).
Rest is not bad. It doesn’t always make you lazy.