Unto Us, Rest Is Given
Rest doesn’t come from stillness alone—but from the presence of the One who holds all things together.
Devotional Credit: Days of Heaven Upon Earth
Photo Credit: Unsplash
Today’s reflection from A.B. Simpson draws from Isaiah’s majestic prophecy, centering on the divine gift of Jesus Christ—our Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace. But it presses deeper than a title. It unveils where true rest is found.
We often chase rest through resolution—solving our biggest problem, escaping our heaviest burden, or soothing our most painful grief. We say, “If only this would go away, then I’d have peace.” But troubles shift and multiply, and still our souls remain restless. Why? Because rest isn’t the absence of trouble—it’s the presence of Christ.
The devotional wisely contrasts the illusion of quiet (like death’s stillness) with the vitality of God-breathed rest. Real rest is not inert—it pulses with holy life. It is not a numbing of cares, but a deep surrender of them into the arms of the One who governs all things.
Like Paul, who resolved to do “this one thing,” we find that the narrow path of following Christ brings simplicity, clarity, and peace—not because life gets easier, but because our hearts are no longer divided. Rest enters when we yield our burdens and walk in the quiet assurance that Christ has already borne them.
📖 Personalized Journal Entry – Voice of the Holy Spirit Through Scripture
I am your Prince of Peace—not just in name, but in My nearness. You look for rest in the lifting of your burdens, but true rest is found when you lay them upon Me. The wound you carry may change locations, but unless you give it to Me, it will never heal. I am the balm your soul was made to receive.
You were not created to carry the government of your life on your own shoulders. That is Mine. It rests fully upon Me. Let Me govern your steps, calm your inner noise, and breathe My life into your tired soul.
The obedience I call you to is not a striving—it is a yielding. It is the single-hearted path of “this one thing”—to follow Me, to abide in Me, to rest in what I’ve already done. Even now I speak peace over your anxious thoughts, for I am not the author of confusion, but of peace.
My peace is not a fleeting feeling; it is a Person—Me, within you. I have not called you to brace yourself for each new trouble. I have called you to dwell in Me, where no storm can overthrow the throne of grace. You are safe, held, and carried. I am Wonderful Counselor for your questions, Mighty God for your weakness, Everlasting Father for your longing, and Prince of Peace for your heart.
Come, rest your soul. I have given you Myself.
Scriptures referenced: Isaiah 9:6; Philippians 3:13; 1 Corinthians 14:33; Matthew 11:28–29; Colossians 3:15
🛋️ Real-Life Analogy
It’s like sitting down in your favorite chair after a long day, not just to rest your body, but to release your breath. You didn’t just stop moving—you let go. That’s the kind of rest Christ offers. Not passive, but a full surrender into safety, where nothing more is expected of you but to remain.
🙏🏼 Prayer of Confidence
Father, I thank You that rest is not a future prize but a present Person—Christ in me, my peace. I rejoice that I no longer have to carry my life on my shoulders, for the government is upon His. I am not abandoned to figure things out or muscle through the unknown. I rest in the reality that Jesus has already borne my burdens, and I trust You to express Your peace through me today. Thank You for being my Wonderful Counselor, my Mighty God, my Everlasting Father, and the Prince who governs my soul with perfect peace.