No rest

O Jerusalem, I have posted watchmen on your walls; they will pray day and night, continually. Take no rest, all you who pray to the Lord. Give the Lord no rest until he completes his work, until he makes Jerusalem the pride of the earth.

— Isaiah 62:6-7

Whenever our family goes on vacation, I look forward to what I call the “sweet middle.”

At the beginning of the week, my emotional, mental and physical RPMs are still pretty high.

They begin to dial down in the change of scenery and schedule.

Eventually, I enter this moment where unconsciously the switch is turned off — the sweet middle.

Rest.

This moment lasts a few days until I think of our return and what’s waiting for me when we do.

God is a huge fan of rest. It actually made his Top 10: “Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy.”

No work. No planning. Just rest.

It’s fascinating to consider Isaiah’s call to “take no rest.”

He then put an exclamation point on it, “Give the Lord no rest.”

Wow!

Jesus echoed this same sentiment. Keep on asking. Keep on seeking. Keep on knocking. The throne room of heaven is to continually be filled with the prayers of God’s people.

God calls for us to rest. Of that, there is no doubt.

He also calls for us to remain in continuous fellowship with him through prayer.

“Pray without ceasing,” Paul would say.

Continuous prayer reminds us who we are and why we’re here. Continuous prayer prepares us for kingdom encounters and spiritual battle. Continuous prayer knits our hearts together with Jesus’ heart “so that the world will believe you (the Father) sent me (Jesus).”

Everywhere

“Am I a God who is only close at hand?” says the Lord. “No, I am far away at the same time. Can anyone hide from me in a secret place? Am I not everywhere in all the heavens and earth?” says the Lord.

— Jeremiah 23:23-24

Several years ago, while on a river hike, we found a rock formation that looked just like a deep hot tub in the middle of the river.

While in it, I took a deep breath and went down looking at the river-forged walls.

In the quietness of that moment, it hit me: God is here.

He knows every crack and crevice. As a matter of fact, he knows what’s going on under the water in every river on the planet!

I came up for air, mind blown.

David reflected on this same reality in Psalm 139: The everywhere-present God.

Jeremiah recorded God saying it himself. I’m everywhere. In the heavens? Yes. ALL the heavens? Yes. Everywhere in ALL the earth? Yes. The center of the sun? The unseen spiritual world? The deepest dark of space? Yes. Yes. And yes.

This truth revealed to us by God is simply unfathomable to our finite minds.

Bottom line, we simply cannot go where God is not.

To Jeremiah’s audience, it was a warning against their deeds done in the darkness. God sees and will hold all to account.

To David, it was a marvel and a source of great comfort.

How does this truth about the nature of God find us today? Are we a little uncomfortable, or are we rejoicing in the promise of his presence?

Wiles is senior minister of Fall Creek Christian Church in Pendleton. He can be reached at 765-778-3166.