Finding Rest and Peace
‘There is no peace,’ says the Lord, ‘for the wicked.’ – Isaiah 48:22.
But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. ‘There is no peace,’ says my God, ‘for the wicked.’ – Isaiah 57:20-21.
Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood; their thoughts are the thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths. – Isaiah 59:7.
The way of peace they have not known, and there is no justice in their ways; they have made themselves crooked paths; whoever takes that way shall not know peace. – Isaiah 59:8.
A new study is out, which has found that 40% of Americans are having trouble staying awake on the job. That could be a major problem for those in some occupations, such as: truck drivers, pilots, air traffic controllers, police officers, fire fighters and many others. Those who receive the recommended eight hours of sleep per day are in the minority.
Sleep is important but the quality of that sleep is much more important. Some close their eyes at night but receive very little rest, whether they sleep four hours or twelve. It is hard to sleep when the day you just went through is going through your mind over and over again. It is hard to sleep when the problems of tomorrow are heavy upon your heart and mind.
The fastest way to develop a sleep problem is to travel down one of those “crooked paths” Isaiah talks about. It may not be the “shedding of innocent blood” but it could be that sin of omission of not doing what you know you should have done. Or it may be something somewhere in between.
How can you make your paths straight? How can you have peace and rest? Jesus says, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light (Matthew 11:28).”
(Forty percent of Americans are having trouble staying awake on the job. It may be from a lack of peace in their lives.)
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