Most American leaders pride ourselves in getting as much done as we possibly can. That often means not getting enough rest. By nature, I’m in this group. I remember once when I was a teenager, and I was keeping an extremely hectic schedule. My Mom said, “You can’t burn the candle at both ends.”
Without hesitation I replied, “It depends how long the candle is!” In other words, “Don’t worry, Mom. I have this. My candle is longer than other people’s and I have so much to do that I can’t worry about it anyway.”
Many years later I heard Pastor Rick Warren say, “Those who burn the candle at both ends aren’t as bright as they think they are.” Whoa. That caught my attention. Pastor Rick wasn’t just making a catchy statement. He was dispensing wisdom that’s backed up by the Bible, the colloquial sayings of famous Americans, and science. We need rest. In fact, the reason I put rest first in the list of the seven areas of life management is that without rest we won’t be able to do the rest well.
As I considered the idea of life management and started reflecting on what would be included in a well-managed life, I was living one of those times when I wasn’t getting enough rest. I never woke up without an alarm (which is a sign of sleep deprivation, by the way–if you need an alarm to wake up each day), and I would often start dragging by the middle of the afternoon. As I thought about that something came to my mind that I had never considered before: When God created the universe He started at night. What do I mean? The Genesis 1 account of creation tells us at the end of each day of creation, “There was evening and morning day ____.” (The blank is filled with the number of the corresponding day.” Why does the day start at night? Why do Jewish days start in the evening to this day? I don’t know the biblical answer to that question, and am not sure there is one. I thought of a practical answer: We often think life centers around us, so of course the day “starts” when we wake up–in the morning. But life actually centers around God. He is always awake. Could it be that He ordered the days with evening first so we would START with rest, and then wake up in the “middle” of the day, and join Him in His work?
Whether that’s the case, I have operated with that concept and it helps me in a couple important ways: 1) it reminds me that life centers on God, not me. 2) It reminds me that rest comes before activity. Yes, it seems that rest comes after activity if I’m self-focused and see the day starting when I wake up, but if I remember that I started the day with rest, and then I join God in His work, it helps me to recognize that my contribution is important but not nearly as important as God’s. It helps me to remember who I am and whose I am.
When it comes to rest, I am learning that not only do I need to start each day with rest (science tells us the average adult needs 7-9 hours of sleep each night), but that in order to function as well as I can when I’m awake, cheating rest is unwise. In addition, to getting enough sleep, rest includes taking time to stop and reflect on who we are and whose we are daily, weekly and annually. We talked about the first hour of the day in a recent post, and we could say that as we invest the first hour of the day in prayer and planning we are resting in God, and determining His plan and purpose for our lives. In addition to that daily time, God ordered that we would exercise Sabbath on a weekly basis, that is we work six days and rest one. On the one we rest, we stop our work, and reflect on Him. This includes worship, and renewing our relationship with God and others. The rhythm of working six days and resting one is good for us, since God established it. Jesus reminded us that the Sabbath is not a rigid, religious observance, but rather a blessing from God.
Finally, I have added a week each year, when I get away to pray, reflect, read and plan. I have done this for two years in a row, and while I am an extreme extrovert for whom the time is a great challenge, I have gained so much from making the commitment to get away and be with God. To be honest the first year was much more “exciting” than this year. Last year, it seemed that God spoke to me throughout the week in clear and compelling ways. This year, it was more a time of rest and reflection, but it cleared my mind and helped me to plan the year ahead much more intentionally than I am able to do with just a daily or even weekly time of reflection.
Your schedule may not permit the week of rest once each year, but getting enough rest each day is so important for long-term physical, emotional and spiritual health. I hope you’ll take some time today to reflect on how your are doing in the area of rest, and to make any necessary adjustments to giving it the priority AND time it deserves in your life. Rested leaders are much more effective leaders over the long haul.
Here’s to leading better by getting enough rest–today!