A Season of Rest
It’s summer time in North America. And it’s a hot one! We are in the throughs of a hot streak and truly experiencing the “dog days of summer”.
Traditionally summer time tends to be a time of slowing down, spending time with family & friends, back yard BBQs, beach or pool days, outdoor concerts, and long leisurely naps if we are lucky! For many, it’s a time to reconnect with nature and with ourselves, and it can also be a season of rest for many of us.
My mom’s family is from Kansas, where life was about wheat and cattle. Spring was for planting, and later summer/early fall was for harvesting. In between, it was waiting for the crop to grow. Sure, you had to nurture the crops and take care of the cattle, but it’s a much slower pace. There is a lot of trust that comes during this season. Trust in what you can’t see and you hope is happening below the ground! Trust that the weather will be good and the crop will flourish. Trust that the harvest will be plentiful and the hard work will pay off.
This year, I thought my summer would be a balance of leisure and of working to get my business going strong again. If you’ve followed me for the past 6 months, you probably know that I just came off of an 8-month sailing sabbatical I took so we could live and travel on our sailboat. Then, we moved from North Carolina to the beaches of Delaware. First, into a temporary 2-month rental and then finally settling into our year-long rental in May. So, in my mind, now is the time for me to get back to work mode after taking a lot of time off!
I was actually excited to get back to work, as I love to set and achieve big goals. If I’m being honest I thrive on that! So my mind was ready to go!
But God has a different plan for me. For the past three months, I’ve felt God calling me to rest, to slow down, and trust.
At first, he nudged me to slow down by creating some minor health challenges - nothing major- but enough to make me realize my energy level was suffering and that I needed to slow down and take care of my well-being.
Then He put a dream in my heart to write a book. It’s a book I’ve been thinking about for two years. A book for you on the Discovering Your Calling process. A book I’ve been scared to write, I’ve been procrastinating writing and having excuses on why it’s not a good time to write it.
A book God is clearly telling me to write!
AND I know God is calling me to create a slower-paced summer schedule. To put aside MY goals and focus on HIS plan… which is very hard for me to do!
I feel Him whisper - write, and rest…
But yet, If I’m being super honest, I've been resisting his call!
I want to set and achieve big goals again… but every time I try, God holds me back and whispers… Rest and Write…
It doesn’t make sense to me… Shouldn’t I work harder to build a business that has been waiting for me to sail down the coast and get settled? Isn’t now the time to work?
But no, the message has been very clear—I hear it in my daily devotional, in songs, from my husband, and loud and clear—REST AND WRITE AND TRUST!
So today, I’m holding up the white flag, letting go and letting God.
I’m thinking about my Granddad Morgan and the trust he had during the growing season. You see, I trust that God is at work growing something I can’t see. I’m assuming he knows the impact this book will have on lives. He knows more than I will ever know or understand.
What will this look like?
I’m not 100% sure, but I know I will devote time to writing and working on this book. I’ll continue to work to bring you valuable and insightful podcasts. I’ll share my journey of resting, writing, and trusting with you on the podcast, along with insights and previews of nuggets I’ll share in the book. Podcast listeners like you will have a front-row seat as this story unfolds (literally and figuratively)!
I’ll keep working with a few elite clients and perhaps do some Start with Strengths coaching sessions… but almost everything else will go on pause.
I hope that by the end of the summer, I’ll have written a book I can be proud of, one that will make a significant impact! And that I’ll be ready when the harvest is set, and God says GO!
I have three questions for you - questions I hope you will take time to really sit and think about:
What has God been whispering (or maybe shouting) to you that you’ve resisted?
Are you in a season of Success - planting or harvesting OR a season of rest?
If it’s rest, what do you need to let go of to fully embrace the rest?
I’d be honored if you emailed or messaged me on Facebook DM to let me know your answers.
Here’s to a summer of writing, rest, and trust!
Listen to the podcast to hear more of my story on resting…
