Do you need a moment to just breathe? Today is National Relaxation Day.
According to data from a 2023 Gallup report,[1] the American Institute of Stress reported that “U.S. workers are some of the most stressed employees in the world.”[2]
Even if you aren’t dealing with workplace-related stress, there are plenty of other things that bring stress into our lives. Bills. Illnesses. Finances. Relationships. Sin. Bad decisions. Things we wish we could undo. The list goes on and on.
Stress weighs heavy on our hearts and minds. It seizes us in a white-knuckled grip and refuses to let go. Even if we manage to deal with one stressor, another replaces it without fail in a vicious cycle seemingly without end. It’s overwhelming. It’s exhausting. What’s more, stress brings anxious thoughts that creep along with it.
What stresses you out? What fills you with anxiety?
Dear Christian, our God knows. He knows what stresses weigh heavily on your heart and mind. He knows what keeps you awake at night, unable to sleep. He knows what burdens threaten to drag you down until you can’t take one more staggering step.
He knows. What’s more, he knows exactly what we need to hear.
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest (Matthew 11:28).”
Yes, Lord—but how?
In his devotional book, Where in the World Is God? Pastor Harold L. Senkbeil put it this way:
Wherever Jesus is, there is rest for weary hearts and burdened souls. He is present among us, offering a Sabbath rest for all the people of God in this world. We have the high honor to come to Jesus where he has promised to be found—in his holy church, where his Word is preached and his sacraments administered. There he continues to bring healing for weary hearts and strength for burdened souls.
Hear the gentle voice of the God who knows as he speaks to you through his Word and sacraments. Hear the love and forgiveness that washes away the weariness and burdensome troubles of life. Feel the heavy weight of sins lifted from your shoulders by the Savior who gave up everything to give you eternal rest.
Today is National Relaxation Day.
Take a moment to just breathe—and listen to your Savior’s gentle voice in his Word. He’s there.
He gives you rest.
Where in the World Is God is a devotional book filled with comfort for anyone facing adversity, discouragement, or fear. Pastor Senkbeil doesn’t presume to know all the answers. Instead, he directs you to the one with the answers—God in his Word.
[1]https://www.gallup.com/workplace/349484/state-of-the-global-workplace.aspx
[2]https://www.stress.org/workplace-stress
Alex Brown is the marketing and content copywriter at Northwestern Publishing House. He has his Master of Divinity degree from Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary and enjoys reading, writing, and spending time in God’s creation.