I feel guilty about not laboring for a whole day. But why should I, or anyone for that matter, feel that way?? It’s our 24/7 always-on-the-go society that makes us feel bad for taking a day off. We all get sick sometimes. And when we do, the loving thing is to take care of ourselves and get a day of rest. It’s loving to set healthy limits for ourselves, and to tell ourselves: “No, don’t work today. You need to rest today.”
Hello Readers, hope all’s well. I pray you’re doing better than I am today (the day of writing, about one month before this goes live). By the time this goes live, I’m sure I’ll be feeling better. Anyway, time for another #shorts post.
Today I’m feeling lousy. Mild fever, runny nose, headache, soreness, all that. With how I’m feeling, it would be a real struggle to write a full-length post. Well, it’s always a struggle to write every post, but that’s another story. After thinking it over, I’ve decided to take a full rest day. Besides writing this #shorts post and some light reading, I’m spending the entire day resting.
I, like most of us, feel guilty about taking an entire ‘sick day.’ I feel guilty about not laboring for a whole day. But why should I, or anyone for that matter, feel that way?? It’s our 24/7 always-on-the-go society that makes us feel bad for taking a day off. We all get sick sometimes. And when we do, the loving thing is to take care of ourselves and get a day of rest. It’s loving to set healthy limits for ourselves, and to tell ourselves: “No, don’t work today. You need to rest today.” We should never feel bad about enforcing healthy limits for ourselves, like a good parent would.
Coincidentally, it just so happens I wrote on this very topic in a recent post entitled, Thou Shalt Take Care of Yourself. It was only three posts ago. And now, so soon after writing that, it’s time for me to take my own advice!! It’s time for me to practice what I preach, and rest from my labor because it’s best for me today. It’s easier said than done for many of us, but if we don’t look after ourselves, who will??
Here’s what I wrote in Thou Shalt Take Care of Yourself about taking a break:
Rest
The last category I’m sure will be everyone’s favorite. Rest, relaxation, and sleep. We all need it, and we don’t do right by ourselves when we overlook it. Like the other categories, there is plenty of research on the benefits of getting enough sleep as well as taking longer periods (about a week) of rest and relaxation two or three times per year. There is also plenty of research on the risks of not getting enough sleep and rest.
Even God rested on the seventh day, showing us the importance of taking a break from our labor. If God rested, who are we to think we don’t need to rest?? Why do so many people today celebrate “the grind” and working themselves to death with no rest??
It’s a cultural problem, that’s what it is. We live in a fast-paced, nonstop, 24-7 culture where the activity never stops. This means for the individual who has to live and work in the society, we don’t get (or don’t take) enough rest from our labor. Too much work with no rest for too long takes a heavy toll on our physical and mental health. This is not the way to honor God with our body. How does it honor God if we can’t continue the good works He planned for our lives because we worked ourselves to the bone and suffered burnout??
As Christians, we must reject the insane demands of our culture for nonstop labor and productivity. Nonstop labor and productivity don’t create a balanced life, and isn’t the way to honor God with our body as 1 Corinthians 6:20 commands.
For more on getting enough rest, check out “Balance Is Divine” and “Balance or Burnout.”
End Quote.
Our 24/7 always-on-the-go culture influences us not to take the sick days and rest we need. Our culture gives us the message to always stay productive. Our culture makes us feel guilty to take a whole rest day. But we need to ignore those false messages, follow the Guidance of the Holy Spirit, and do what’s best for us. If that means taking a sick day and not working, no problem!! The guilt our culture pushes on us for that is false guilt.
Since I’m choosing to take my own advice and practice what I preach, I pray I’ll be back on my feet by tomorrow!!
That’s it for #shorts Part 25.
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99:9
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