Hustle and Pray: Work Hard. Stay Surrendered. Let God Lead.Sample

Rest Is Not Weakness

Why is it so hard to slow down? Even when we’re tired, we keep pushing. Even when we say we trust God, we act like everything depends on us.

If we’re honest, most of us treat rest like a reward—not a rhythm. We only feel “allowed” to rest when we’ve earned it. But that’s not how God designed us.

I’ve had seasons where I was running on empty, convincing myself that resting meant I wasn’t hungry enough, strong enough, committed enough. I thought rest was weakness… but Jesus rested, too. If the Son of God made space to pause, what makes us think we’re supposed to run nonstop?

“Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, ‘Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.’”
— Mark 6:31 (NIV)

Jesus didn’t shame His disciples for being tired. He invited them to step away. To recharge. To rest.

This moment in Mark comes right after the disciples had been sent out on mission. They were working—ministering, healing, preaching—and they came back spent. Jesus didn’t tell them to grind harder. He said, Come away with Me.

That’s the heart of biblical rest: it’s not just stopping, it’s stopping with Jesus. Real rest isn’t laziness. It’s faith. It’s trusting that God is still working when we are not. It’s remembering that we are human beings—not human doings.

Where in your life do you need to make space for God’s rest? Maybe it’s one night a week where you shut off the screens and sit with Scripture. Maybe it’s building margin into your mornings so you can pray before you produce.

Don’t wait until you burn out to listen to your limits. Honor God by embracing the rhythm He built into creation—work and rest.

Prayer

Lord, teach me to rest in You. Help me to trust that Your provision doesn’t depend on my pace. Quiet the voices that tell me my worth comes from what I do. Lead me to still waters, because that’s where You restore my soul. Amen.

If rest is about trust, what happens when hustle becomes about control? Tomorrow we’ll talk about what happens when our grind becomes our god.