Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
Matthew 11:28 NIV
I brought two hammocks back from our holiday in Mexico, hoping they will remind me of my need to rest a little. I’m a person who always finds something that needs to be done, and it’s very difficult for me to sit still and rest.
I loved to watch the lifestyle in the area of Mexico where we vacationed. The more relaxed attitude became something I learned to appreciate. Many live in simple houses; often the whole family lives in one room. It is their kitchen and living room, and when night comes, they hang up their hammocks, and it becomes a bedroom. The families I saw didn’t seem to need so many things, just a gas cooker, a refrigerator, a TV set, a table, and a hammock. If you don’t have to finance all the rest of the things we consider necessities, life isn't so exhausting. You don’t need to work all the time.
I’ve learned a few Spanish words typical for this lifestyle: manana (tomorrow), mas o menos (more or less), no se preocupe (don’t worry).
God, of course, knew from the beginning that people could not, should not, work the whole time, so He gave us the Sabbath – a kind of a hammock in time, a time for us to rest and get away from it all.
But we even tend to fill the Sabbath hours with holy busyness. I wonder if holy stress is any better than everyday stress.
Why are we so busy? Where does my inner unrest come from that makes me want to do something all the time? Is it just something to keep my thoughts occupied so that I won’t realize what I really need, that I need peace and rest to be able to communicate with my God?
When I’ve finished all my projects, I will get into my hammock and rest. But if I wait until all my projects are finished, I will never find the time for my hammock. You see, my work seems to multiply quicker than I can get it done.
And that is why I wanted these hammocks. When I see them, I will be reminded that even I should get some rest, that I need to rest. And so I must get into my hammock and let others take over for a while. And maybe I will realize that things get done, even without me.
Grace Notes © 2008 by Review and Herald Publishing Association