Choose Rest

“Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the LORD hath dealt bountifully with thee.” (Ps 116:7 AV)

 

Psalm 116 is a psalm of someone who was brought back from a very threatening physical threat.  It may have been a battle wound.  It may have been an illness.  The writer of this psalm, and psalm 118, share the same sentiments.  They are eternally grateful God brought them back from the brink of death and are given an extended life.  Especially expressed is the blessing of continued service towards the LORD.  In this verse, the writer tells himself to return to a place of rest.  All the anxiety over the life-threatening situation has been relieved.  God has met the need.  He has removed the enemy.  Yet, the soul is still in a state of unrest.  There is a point to be made, here.  Rest is a choice.  We can continue in fear and anxiety long after God answers our prayers.  Or, we can choose to trust that God did it all and there is nothing to fear.  We can either continue to relive the emotions of the past, or we can choose to live in rest.  Rest is a choice.

This morning is Christmas.  Let me tell you about my Christmas gift.  It came a few months early.  We; my wife and I; have had an interesting and stressful 2022.  Lisa was diagnosed with stage IV grade 1 NET.  It is a rare form of cancer caused by an imbalance of certain hormones.  No one wants to hear the ‘C’ word.  We all dread it.  We cannot say we were not warned.  Four years ago, due to intestinal issues, she had an MRI which showed some of this growth.  When the diagnosis came, Lisa went under the knife.  They did radical and extensive surgery to remove all the tumors which lit up on an earlier PET scan.  When the surgeon gave her postoperative report, she expressed success.  The only minor concern was that Lisa lost about twenty percent of her liver.  Recovery was something else altogether.  There were postoperative follow-up appointments with her surgeon and oncologist.  There were two more scans.  Each visit brought hypotheticals.  Much in our own minds that had no place in reality.  The thing is, we will go through what every couple goes through when facing this monster.  There are always outlying fears that God can easily match.  The reports came back well, if not perfect.  Her treatments, although a bit difficult at times, are highly successful.  Lisa had the reassurance that there would not have to be any more surgeries as extensive as she just went through.  God has been so good!  My Christmas present is sitting beside me.  She, in her recliner, and me in mine.  This is the best Christmas ever!

But there is that issue of a soul at rest.  We can make one of two choices.  We can either live in the hypotheticals of the future which will most likely never come to pass.  Or, we can live in the victories of today.  The heart must be disciplined.  It must be told to be quiet.  There is rest to be had.  Like closing our eyes for sleep and choosing to sleep rather than allow our minds to race all night long, we can choose to live in rest and contentment, or we can choose to live in anxiety and fear.  I choose rest!  Rest is a choice.  You can either choose to live there or not.  This state of mind and heart is not something God can do for us.  It is something we must do for ourselves.  Choose rest.  Choose faith.  Choose trust.  Choose rest.