Rest Assured: A Biblical Look at Rest and Busyness
A couple of months ago, I confessed to a friend that I was constantly overwhelmed. As a business owner, there is always some new lead to chase. Between investment management, coaching clients, creating content, and trying to grow the business, my days seemed to disappear. Even the weekends I tried to protect were filled with church commitments and household projects.
The strange part was that I wasn’t doing anything wrong. I was working hard, serving my church, and building a business God called me to. Yet I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was exhausted.
That’s when I began to realize that taking time off and actually resting are not the same thing.
Why Christians Struggle to Rest
Hustle culture tells us our worth comes from production. We continue to strive for the next goal without taking a break. Our kids are rushed from school to a club or sport. We’re juggling work, chores, and more obligations.
Even times we think we are resting because we are physically still, we may not be experiencing true rest. We doomscroll, binge-watch TV, or overthink until we’ve completely filled every moment in the day.
Ask yourself: When was the last time I realized I was physically resting but mentally working?
This can look like working on vacation, or mentally planning tomorrow while trying to go to bed. The inability to rest may reveal deeper fears: that you aren’t doing enough or earning enough. But rest was never meant to be a reward; it was designed to refresh your soul.
God Designed Rest From the Beginning
Before God ever commanded the Sabbath, He modeled it. After six days of creation, God rested on the seventh day.
This wasn’t because God was tired. Rather, He was establishing a rhythm for humanity. Rest appears in Scripture before sin entered the world, which means it is not simply a remedy for exhaustion, but a part of God’s design.
In a culture that treats rest as something to earn after enough productivity, Genesis presents a different picture. Rest is woven into creation itself.
Retirement is Not the Same as Rest
Many people spend decades working toward retirement with the expectation that once they finally reach their financial goals, peace and contentment will naturally follow. Yet I’ve spoken with retirees who say things like, “I don’t know how I ever had time to work,” while others struggle with boredom, anxiety, or a lingering sense that they should be doing more.
The reality is that retirement changes your schedule, but it does not automatically change your heart.
Biblically, rest is not the absence of purpose. Retirement is a financial and lifestyle transition. Rest is something deeper. It is a state of trust in God that can be experienced whether you are working full-time, serving in ministry, raising children, or enjoying retirement.
Some retirees stop working but never truly find rest because they remain anxious about money, status, or purpose. Others continue to serve, volunteer, mentor, and invest in relationships while experiencing a deep sense of peace. The difference is not found in whether they are employed. It is found in where they place their trust.
True biblical rest is not something we postpone until age 65. It is a habit of trusting God today. In fact, if we never learn to rest during our working years, retirement may simply expose that struggle rather than solve it.
Jesus Modeled Rest in His Ministry
Jesus never treated constant activity as a measure of faithfulness. Throughout the Gospels, He regularly withdrew from crowds and spent time in prayer. “Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.” Mark 1:35.
What’s remarkable is that Jesus often stepped away when there was still more work to do. Sick people still needed healing. Crowds still wanted His attention. Yet He understood something we often forget: obedience does not require constant availability. “Yet the news about him spread all the more, so that crowds of people came to hear him and to be healed of their sicknesses. But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.” Luke 5:15-16
Jesus modeled rest to teach us that busyness is not a measure of faithfulness. If Jesus could step away from unfinished work to spend time with God, perhaps we should as well.
What Sabbath Teaches Us About Money
The sabbath in terms of money: build margin in your budget. Most people understand the importance of financial margin. To build an emergency fund, avoid excessive debt, and spend less than you earn may already be steps you’re taking on your financial journey. But when it comes to your time, every hour is spoken for.
Financial margin is to money what sabbath is to time. They both create space that protects us from the illusion that everything depends on us.
How to Practice Biblical Rest in a Busy World
1. Schedule Rest Before You Think You Need It
Most people rest only after exhaustion or illness forces them to stop. Try blocking out a weekly period for rest. Protect that time as seriously as a work appointment. And avoid treating that rest as a reward you can only unlock after finishing everything on your to-do list.
2. Practice Trust by Leaving Some Work Undone
One lesson of Sabbath is accepting that not everything will get finished. Today we tend to believe that everything depends on our actions and working just a little more will ease the anxiety. End your workday at a set time. It’s okay to leave some tasks for tomorrow. Use that discomfort as an opportunity to trust God.
3. Build Margin into Your Finances
Financial steps like building an emergency fund and reducing debt not only provide financial peace; they also create a similar sense of rest. Continue making financial strides, such as avoiding lifestyle creep and spending less than you earn. Build a financial plan that prioritizes daily rest over mindless accumulation for retirement.
4. Prepare for Retirement by Developing Rest Now
Many people assume retirement will finally bring the peace they’ve been searching for. But if you haven’t learned how to rest during the working years, retirement can magnify that problem. Learn how to enjoy a quiet time here or there by leaving your phone in another room. Invest in relationships and take time to serve others in church or at a nonprofit. Focus on finding contentment in your situation today.
Rest as Trust in God
The world tells us to rest when we’ve finally done enough or earned enough. Biblical rest is about trusting more. God rested after creation. He commanded the Sabbath for His people. Throughout the Bible, rest is not presented as a reward for perfect productivity, but an expression of trust.
Rest is an act of faith. In a culture that celebrates constant hustle and financial accumulation, choosing to rest is a declaration that God is in control and that our value comes from Him, not from our productivity. The goal is not simply to reach retirement with enough money to stop working. The goal is to live with the kind of trust in God that allows us to rest today.
Bible Verses for Reflection
“Better one handful with tranquility than two handfuls with toil and chasing after the wind” -Ecclesiastes 4:6
“Yet the news about him spread all the more, so that crowds of people came to hear him and to be healed of their sicknesses. But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.” -Luke 5:15-16
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” -Matthew 11:28