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10 Minutes Peace
by Susan McGrath
The following is a humorous look at the exhaustion that often creeps up on us as moms. Sleep deprivation, weariness, a bad case of the yawns - whatever you want to call it, this condition is detrimental to our ability to be the mothers, wives and women of God we desire to be.
Signs that you need to catch up on your sleep:
-the kids suggest McDonald's for supper and it sounds like a good idea;
-you fall asleep watching your favorite episode of (fill in your personal favorite);
-you are grateful for red lights because you can close your eyes;
-you're glad the bed didn't get make this morning because now you can just fall into it;
-you find Sponge Bob more amusing than annoying;
-you read your kids the shortest book you can find for a bedtime story;
-you sleep through your husband's snoring;
-you sleep through your husband and kids going out for breakfast;
-you're a mom.
Physical rest is not the only kind of rest we need to catch up on; in fact, it's not even the most important. I spent several years being sleep-deprived due to a child who never slept and post-partum depression, but I know that even that bone-deep, mind-numbing physical exhaustion does not compare with a spirit deprived of encouragement. Resting in God, through trust, study, prayer and fellowship is even more essential than resting our bodies.
In Leviticus 25, God said the land was to have a year of rest. Psalm 62 says we find rest in God alone. And on the seventh day, after creation, God rested. Not because he was tired, but because He knew we eventually would be and He wanted to set an example. He commanded the Sabbath rest for the children of Israel. He strongly recommends it for us today. Christ freed us from the commandment of rest on the Sabbath - He freed us to find rest in Him.
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." - Matthew 11:28-30
Rate it:
a recovering journalist trying to encourage others and glorify God through writing;
living the small-town life with husband Tim and sons Lincoln, 12, and Sawyer, 6;
completing a few put-off writing projects while using chocolate for therapy.
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