the beauty of rest

May 18, 2006

every time i go to the pool before lunch, i always see this asian gentleman chilling out on one of the lawn chairs. he's there every day, at the same time, on the same chair, with the same look. it's such a peaceful and restful picture. he looks so calm and relaxed. it really is beautiful. every time i look at him, i am reminded of how beautiful rest is.

before i was diagnosed with fm, i thought rest was a big waste of time. whenever i had free time, i felt like i had to do something productive with it. if i didn't, i felt like i wasted it. being asian didn't help me either. asians have a need to always do something. if they aren't doing something productive, they feel useless and helpless. their identity is tied to their work. i knew that all too well.

after being diagnosed with fm, i was forced to slow down. i simply did not have the energy or the strength to continue life at the same pace. the pain in my body made me take more breaks. i was literally forced to rest. i was forced to face the fact that i couldn't be productive all the time. i felt helpless and useless. i was forced to confront the fact that my identity was tied to what i could do, on my ability to perform, to deliver, to produce.

in december, i wrote a paper on an aspect of leadership that isn't talked about much in the church: self-care. sometimes the best thing we can do for the ministry is take care of ourselves. but this principle isn't simply for leaders. we were created to need rest. in order to function properly, the way God intended us to function, we must rest.

have you ever wondered why God created humans to need sleep? He could have made us differently, full of limitless energy, but He didn't. humans require sleep. if we don't get enough sleep, we suffer consequences, very bad ones at that! yet, despite this, most of us rarely get the recommended 7-8 hours of sleep. our culture moves at lightning speed. everyone is on the go. go-go-go. if you want to see it for yourself, head to the downtown core of your city and observe how people move about. we're moving faster by the second. we're told that time is money. we're told to make the most out of our time. and without realizing it, these thoughts bury deep within us.

many of us move through life at high speed. we keep pushing our bodies until they inevitably breakdown. we become burnt-out and are left feeling drained and empty. it's happened to many of us. it's happened to me. it's easy, isn't it? overlooking rest is incredibly easy to do. we've all done it, cramming for essays, exams, or projects. most students tend to jump right into a summer job after their year of school is over. most students try to jump right into a full time job after graduating. if they don't, they most likely get pressure from their other friends and/or parents.

we must protect ourselves from these lies that culture keeps feeding us. we must see and believe how important rest is. rest is beautiful. rest is essential. rest is life. rest is not a waste of time. i applaud the people who have enough sense to make time for rest. it's truly a beautiful thing. we could learn a lot from that asian man from the pool. as we learn to rest, we begin to truly see how life giving it is.

Posted by Leo Chan at May 18, 2006 4:42 PM