There is a place of quiet rest,
near to the heart of God;
a place where sin cannot molest,
near to the heart of God.
Refrain:
O Jesus, blest Redeemer,
sent from the heart of God,
hold us, who wait before Thee,
near to the heart of God.
There is a place of comfort sweet,
near to the heart of God;
a place where we our Savior meet,
near to the heart of God.
There is a place of full release,
near to the heart of God;
a place where all is joy and peace,
near to the heart of God.
Cleland Boyd McAfee
You may have heard this beautiful hymn before. As I was hoofing it up and down my road recently, this song kept coming to mind. Specifically, the first line:
There is a place of quiet rest…near to the heart of God.
It was a partial answer to a prayer. Although a whisper, an answer, nonetheless. In the chaos of life, the busyness of life, the scheduling (over), the work (over), the care, the chores, the necessary, (and frankly, the unnecessary,) the commitments, the volunteering, the voluntolding, the expectations, the spinning plates and the juggling balls, sometimes we just need rest.
There is a place of quiet rest,
A rest that the world doesn’t understand – the world tells us the more we do the more important we are (lie), the more we will prosper (lie), we have to do more to keep up with everyone else who is doing more (lie), that you will let everyone down (lie), that you are weak (lie), and the earth will stop spinning if you don’t keep spinning (lie), plus other lies that the enemy is so so good at telling us and we (me) are so so good at believing. To be honest, all those “reasons” are not good, they are narcissistic, prideful, and about one thing – me! These (and many more) are all fiery darts zinging around in the atmosphere from the evil one and sometimes we (me) fall for them. Each lie we believe pulls us further and further away from The Truth. But, at some point we have to stop listening to the lies and absorb The Truth. We need to go to the place of quiet rest.
Near to the heart of God.
And there’s only one place to do this. A sheltered place, a protected place, a fortress. And there’s only one way to get there.
For the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel has said: “You will be delivered by returning and resting; your strength will lie in quiet confidence.”
Isaiah 30:15
Deliverance from the world and all the world’s demands will only be found in returning and resting. The Hebrew word used for “returning” (shubah) is unique. It is found exactly one time in the Bible, right here in verse 15. It means withdrawal and repentance. To repent of self-reliance, narcissism, pride, self-absorption, and a return to reliance on God.
And folks…that is where I’m at. Maybe you too? Now? Ever?
Another cool Hebrew word in this verse is “shaqat.” Its essence is quietness. To be quiet, to be at rest, to be undisturbed, to be tranquil, to repose. Not just noiseless, but this kind of settled state of calm where hostile forces have been subdued and fear has been silenced. Peace. Shaqat expresses covenant (relationship with God) well-being granted by the Lord and enjoyed by His people. Who doesn’t want that?!?!?! I do!
You may have heard me say one of my three mantras in life – “Keep on Swimming!” “Never Surrender!” and “Just Keep Going!” But sometimes in life you have to get out of the pool before you shrivel up and sink, sometimes you have to stop resisting what you know is true, and sometimes you have to stop to just catch your breath.
The problem is knowing when. The second problem, maybe bigger, is doing it.
Recently, in talking about something totally unrelated to this blog, my sister mentioned sometimes we need a “Sabbath Season.” An extended season of intentional rest, of stepping away from routine work, duties and heavy commitments. Our lives are sometimes so booked, run, and busy that we don’t have a true Sabbath. We don’t have just one day of the week to cease all work to delight in God, that’s what Biblical Sabbath is really about.
This was the other part of the answer to my prayer. So…I’m going to be taking an extended Sabbath Season from this blog space and reevaluating other work and commitments. This time is going to not just be a “break” as I’ve taken in the past, not just a time to rest from the blog, but an active Season of Sabbath. A time to focus on “renewal” as the Reformed Church calls it where time is reinvested into prayer, relationship with God, reading, family connection, creative hobbies, and quiet reflection and meditation on His Word rather than labor or striving (spinning and juggling). A time to just be “present” in each moment without thinking about what has to be done in the next. A time to listen more than talk (or write). A time to just be…with Him.
My Sabbath Season will be about going to:
a place where sin cannot molest,
a place of quiet rest (physically, mentally, spiritually),
a place of comfort sweet,
a place where we our (me) Savior meet (remeet),
a place of full release,
a place where all is joy and peace,
And there’s only one way to get to all these places. To get:
near to the heart of God.
I don’t know how long this Sabbath Season for this site will be. My thought is through the end of 2026. But while I’m present with Him, while He holds me and I wait for Him, He will tell me.