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George and I just finished reading Messy Spirituality by Mike Yaconelli. Before returning it to the library this week I jotted down a few things from the section on living busy lives. Yaconelli writes, “we have no slow lanes anymore. Every lane is fast, and the only comfort our culture can offer is more lanes and increased speed limits.” He also describes speed as having “a deafening roar that drowns out the whispering voices of our souls and leaves Jesus as a diminishing speck in the rearview mirror.”

Yaconelli then discusses rest (as in Matt. 11:18).

The ugly truth, however, is that many of us do not know how to rest! Actually, we do know how to rest; we simply refuse to rest. Rest is a decision we make. Rest is choosing to do nothing when we have too much to do, slowing down when we feel pressure to go faster, stopping instead of starting. Rest is listening to our weariness and responding to our tiredness, not to what is making us tired. Rest is what happens when we say one simple word: “No!” Rest is the ultimate humiliation because in order to rest, we must admit we are not necessary, that the world can get along without us, that God’s work does not depend on us. Once we understand how unnecessary we are, only then might we find the right reasons to say yes. Only then might we find the right reasons to decide to be with Jesus instead of working for him. Only then might we have the courage to take a nap with Jesus.

I think Yaconelli may be right. It’s not that I don’t know how to rest, I do. But it’s really hard for me to choose to rest. Figuring out how to choose rest without feeling guilty about all the things I’m not doing, now that’s even harder. But I want to try.