Rest at the Altar

Jordan McKinney

For this post I thought I should do a little confessing of what God has been working in my life, and hopefully it will help you out in yours. I don’t know if you are like me, but I have been really busy the last few months. I have been working a little longer than normal, and working hard. And when I work hard, I usually crash pretty hard as well.  

Usually, the things that I like to do to relax are play video games or watch golf. And recently one of my favorite video game series, The Legend of Zelda, just released a new title, so I have been playing that a lot. Well after a couple weeks of this cycle of work hard, go home, get the kid to bed, and play games, I realized that I hadn’t read my Bible for myself outside of my work as a pastor. It was in this moment that I thought, “oh no, I should get my Bible.” I started reading where I had left off, which happened to be Hebrews chapter 4.  

Hebrews 4 is talking about the rest of Christ. In its context it is really talking about salvation that only comes from Jesus vs the Law of the Old Covenant. When I was reading it, though, this is what I felt God was saying to me: 

“Real rest comes only from Jesus. He is the one that renews your strength. When you enter into my presence not only will you get rest for your body, but for your spirit and your soul. You have not been resting, which is why you are still so tired, but you have been distracting yourself. Put down the distractions and enter into the rest I will give you.” 

I had been doing the things that I love, which is great. But I had neglected the most important thing, getting time at the Altar. I had been a bit stressed, and I never felt relief when playing games or finding distractions on YouTube. It is only at the Altar that I could really get rest. 

Now this is what I am trying to do in my life, somewhat successfully. When I get to that point in my day where I think, “I feel like can finally do what I want to do” (if you are a parent you know exactly what I am talking about), before I grab a remote, phone, or controller, I try to spend the first of that time with Jesus. Sometimes I still catch myself before getting ready for bed and realize I had forgotten, and I am still working on giving that “first fruit” of my time to God. 

But maybe you are in a busy or stressful time in your life and you aren’t feeling rested. Self-evaluate: are you finding real rest at the Altar, or are you just distracting yourself? Find rest in Jesus, who can strengthen your soul and give you the peace that you need.