This morning, I was doing some thinking. I was thinking about something my mom would say to me when I was sick. She would ask me if I would rather go to work and do what I could and get paid for being there, or sit at home, feeling bad, worrying about work and not get paid? She asked which was the better choice…
And I saw her logic. It was better to go to work and do what I could, not nearly what I would normally do, but at least I wasn’t losing any money…
I’ve really tried to teach my children that, too. If you can, work, if you really are that sick or contagious, then please do stay home.
But this morning when I thought about what Mom said, it struck a little different for me. You see, I am very blessed to be able to accrue Paid Time Off. Mom was not. So she didn’t have the luxury to take time for herself when she was sick. She would push through because the bills fell on her shoulders. She never rested, always working just as hard as she could, because she was working as if for the Lord.
But, the Lord gives us rest from our labor. He provides us time for resting and healing. He provides.
I’m not saying Mom would still be here if she had rested, but I am saying she may not have had such a struggle with her health if she had rested. Now she trusted in her Provider, but she was also stubborn and hardheaded, much like her daughter.
I think about taking time off to rest when I am sick…but the thoughts that get me are the ones of who is watching me. Maya Angelou said “I do my best because I’m counting on you counting on me.” And every move I make, I think about who is watching me, what they are seeing and am I being a light for them on a good path, or am I leading them into darkness. This weighs heavy on me each day.
God knows I try so hard, and He knows I fail so much.
Life is a bunch of lessons we face each day. We don’t always learn what we should, but we do our best.
God gave us rest; everything we need, He gives us freely. He provides everything.
Take time to heal; healing takes time.
OneFourZeroPM 
Boy this really resonates. I try to apply it but sometimes my rest is still work. I do need to do better at that because like you I feel if my Mom had rested she wouldn’t have struggled so much with her health.
But even knowing that it is so hard to do when you know others are watching and counting on you. Thanks for opening up to us.
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I was thinking of my children and how I know they need to rest…but like me, they don’t because of everything they need to get done. They have watched me work hard and never stop. I feel like I’ve failed them by not teaching them to take care of themselves. That is what has caught my attention.
Those habits are hard to break.
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I completely understand that feeling. It’s so hard to balance but I’m learning even God took a day to rest. I’m certainly no better than him and I’m supposed to do following his example. Now, I’ve just recently started doing this and some days I do better than others. Practice makes permanent.
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