Finding rest in the chaos

Recently, God has been taking me back to the basics with both medicine and my relationship with Him. One thing I was floored by is fractures. As a pediatrician, I am very likely to see fractures in the kids I see. Once a fracture occurs, the skeleton is designed to remodel and heal itself- to put itself back to baseline or homeostasis. Special cells called osteoclasts break up the dead parts of tissue that have been injured, and osteoblasts start laying down a new bony matrix. This is the same process that occurs daily, but is accelerated with a fracture. A cast is often placed on the affected body part, so that the patient has to decrease activity to decrease risk of re-injury.

For fractures we understand at least in theory that you have to stop repeating the same injury to give it time to heal. But if we’re talking about anything else, people act like you’re crazy for suggesting time and rest as the answer. I remember one lady livid at me- exclaiming in spite of the awful pain she was having in her knee, there was no way she could take a break from running 25 miles every day! I just looked back at her in exasperation, not knowing what else to say. If our bodies are experts at breaking down the old, resting, and then rebuilding, why aren’t we?

Medical professionals are often known to be very driven, with type-A personalities. In fact, you almost have to be to get through the training. We care for patients who are at their lowest, but often look down on truly resting ourselves. “Being lazy” is the phrase me and my friends use to describe those days when we are not working hard on some project and just enjoying the sunshine, each other’s company, or literally doing nothing. But if you think about it, we weren’t created for non-stop, pavement pounding, run ourselves into the ground, unending work. We were created for life and life more abundantly.

God never intended for us to be working so hard we run ourselves into the ground, even doing his own work. First, we have to learn to create regular opportunities for rest. The Bible refers to this as taking a Sabbath. Amazing peace can come from just spending time with the Lord. I personally started doing this as a college student, setting aside one evening every week (mostly!) where I would not work and would rest with God. But it has to be prioritized the same way the rest of our schedule is.

Second, we cannot do the things God has called us to do in our own strength. We have to do our best with the jobs he has called us to do, and give the rest to God. God said that his yoke would be easy, and his burden light (Matthew 11:28-30). That doesn’t mean that our lives would be without heartache, and pain, or good old-fashioned hard work, but it does mean that He bears the brunt of the weight of whatever we carry as we walk side by side with Him.

I also love that our bodies are designed with cells whose job is to break things down. If it were up to us, we would build new things anyway, ignoring the dead, rotting cells and flesh that would get infected and destroy everything new. But that’s not how God works. He knows you have to tear down the old before you can build again. It can’t go any other way, no matter how many fast food restaurants, quick fixes, and overnight successes we aim for- lasting and true success only comes one way. So whether it’s a broken leg, a cold, a shattered heart, or a life change, we need to keep the whole picture in mind:

Break. Rest. Wait. Then new Growth and lasting change.

And if we can learn to do that, it really will change everything. How are you doing taking the time to both find rest and enjoy it in your life?

 

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30.