I know that I usually post items that are humorous here, but today, I thought it might be a good idea to share a recent experience I had in hopes that it will help you to realize that real help is out there for whatever you are experiencing right now. We are so busy nowadays that I think we have been lulled into a constant state of chaos. I have been praying about “rest” for myself and I want to share with you how fast and wonderfully God answered that prayer. He continues to do so as I am by no means and expert on the subject.

A few weeks ago a great counselor I know asked me to look into how I “rest”. I thought to myself that I would take a shortcut and just google the subject for a quick answer. That’s how we do things nowadays right? It wasn’t a surprise to me that I found items like exercise, yoga, deep breathing, etc. as the top results; however, it seemed to me that although these are all very good recommendations, something was still missing in my heart when it came to truly resting.

I was blessed to attend a “Wild at Heart Basic” event last weekend where a group of Christian men got together at a remote cabin in a rice field close to Stuttgart, Arkansas, to go over the RansomedHeart.com programs. These sessions are meant to ask real questions about the heart of a man and what Jesus really meant when he said that he came to seek and to save that which was lost. I was excited to attend and can recommend it to everyone. They even have a free app with mountains of great information and podcasts related to our walk with God and how our hearts can truly be healed by Him.

After each session, I was expecting to sit around and discuss the content. Imagine my surprise when the leader of the event, Geoffrey Stephens said “Okay, we are taking a 45 minute covenant of silence until the beginning of the next session.” I asked myself, “What am I supposed to do with this? Even though I had asked God to help me to answer the “rest” question days ago, I had given in to the idea that He likely didn’t hear me or I wasn’t praying hard enough so I just went on to the event and attempted to work it out for myself later, when I had time.

John & Staci Eldredge and the great team at Ransomed Heart Ministries are really on to something.   They don’t focus on denominations or competitions, but are laser focused on the hearts of those that love Jesus, helping us to connect with Jesus in ways that brings true healing in a fallen world.  I thank God for them and I thank Geoff Stephens for taking the time and making the effort to bring the WAH Basic to an area near me.

You might like to download their free app “Ransomed Heart”.  I think the podcasts are the greatest resource.  You can scroll through years of podcasts to find one on a subject that relates to your current situation.  Most are around 20 minutes long and are a wonderful replacement for the negative news I usually listen to on my drive home.

Back to the event in Arkansas…  For four days the covenants of silence continued. On the third day I “got it”.  God allowed me to focus on the question of the session, which directed my thoughts. That allowed me to slow my brain down, and guess what?  I learned how to rest a little better. It was an amazing realization, it took only about 15 minutes on average and it was fairly easy. He was able to point out that I need to “slow down”, not my body, but my mind.  Sound familiar?

Now, instead of promising myself that I am going to “unplug” and sitting around on Saturday morning doing nothing and feeling guilty about it, I am putting my phone down, asking God what He wants me to work on in my heart, and watching the grass grow or the leaves turn for Fall. He is always there waiting on me. It is such a wonderful rest and it doesn’t take as long as when I try to do things my way.

Matthew 11:28-30 New International Version (NIV) – 28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 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. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Remember, God is faithful to complete the good work in you that he started.  He is patient, gentle, and you are worth His effort.

May God bless and keep you and your family, and may He bless every second of your life.

Ken Dulaney