Crucified for us on the Cross at Calvary, Jesus breathed His last breath and cried out, ‘It is finished!’ But as He did, I believe that what He finished on our behalf only marked the beginning of a new reality in our midst. Something that Scripture calls the Kingdom of God.

“For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.”
(Romans 14:17, ESV)

‘Righteousness‘ is a huge word and a big reality. Jesus Himself paid a mighty price for us to receive an identity and inheritance based on the truth that we are the righteousness of God in Christ. It is not based on what we have done or are doing, but rather on what Jesus has done for us.

And in my walk with the Lord, especially in these end times on the earth, I have learned an important part of why Jesus died for us in terms of our inheritance as children of God and co-heirs with Christ —

REST.

Why?

If God sent Jesus to pay the price He did for us to be able to enjoy rest, then any part of us that tries to fight this is under the influence of a lie.

I discovered it truly is a lie of the enemy and the false narrative of the world that tells us that should we take the time we need to rest, recover and refresh ourselves, we are selfish.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

If anything at all, the Word of God reveals a very different reality. As children of God in Christ Jesus, we are called to strive for nothing other than to enter into the rest of God.

“Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.”
(Hebrews 4:11, ESV)

The truth is, whatever we need has already been purchased by Christ on our behalf. Our lives are now governed not by the strength of our works but by the promises of God in Christ Jesus. Our part is to rest in that truth, trust, and abide in Him as His much-loved children who know their Father is faithful.

But what about work?

As believers in Christ, we are a people called to lead productive and fruitful lives. Yet, we are a people primarily at rest. So how does this hybrid reality of ‘restful work’ play out?

I am discovering that when we remain at rest and abide in Christ, we can experience an internal rest and peace that only He can provide. We remain at rest when we release all the outcomes of our life situations into His capable care and let our expectations be grounded in Him rather than placing our confidence elsewhere.

Because we know we can trust Him, we find the freedom to embrace His process for us. As we walk it out hand-in-hand, we will find the power of connection and communion with the Lord provides us with all the strength we need without any striving.

It is, therefore, from the abundance and the overflow of our relationship with Christ that we are all called to love and serve, so we can effectively manifest a slice of Heaven on the earth in whatever it is that we have been co-missioned.

For in the Kingdom, our works flow out of our worship.

Rest – Receive – Release

Jesus did not die for us to live weary, exhausted, constantly stressed-out lives. On the contrary, He died for us to have peaceful, content, and tranquil lives secure in Him. And the truth is the degree to which we can learn to rest in the Lord is the degree to which we can receive what He has to offer, and the degree to which we can receive from Him is the degree to which we can release His love into the world around us.

Rest – Receive – Release.

Simply put, when we rest in the Lord, we position ourselves to receive, and when we receive, we position ourselves to release Heaven on earth.

In the light of this revelatory insight, a cry of my heart in response to Him has become,

"Help us, Lord, to rest in You so that we can receive abundantly the life that You provide extravagantly so that it may be released effortlessly."

“I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”
(John 15:5, ESV)

☆New Creations in Christ☆

As believers in Christ, we are a brand new race of people called to live out the new creation reality. It is not a lifestyle of trying to fix everything on our own, struggling to find solutions in our limited wisdom, or even striving in our own strength — quite the opposite.

It is, in fact, a lifestyle that is completely at rest in the Lord. It is founded on humility and vulnerability before the Lord, where we admit that we need Him. For apart from Him, we can do nothing.

But in Him and through Him, all things are possible.

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
(Philippians 4:13, NKJV)

☆Making time and space☆

For us to draw on His strength, we have to be willing to spend time with Him. To thrive amid an especially chaotic world in these end times, we need to be intentional about carving out some time with the Lord where we can reconnect with the rhythm and the cadence of His heartbeat.

“Come to me, all 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 11:28-30, ESV)

But how do we practically apply this principle to our lives?

I don’t think there are any right or wrong ways to do this, only what is most authentic and effective in connecting us to the heart of the Father.

Time to allow our souls to reconnect with the heart of God in a deeply personal way is key. For some, this could look like:

》Going for a walk outdoors to breathe in the awe-inspiring wonders of creation

》Fixing a jigsaw puzzle in the comfort of their home

》 Reading a fictional novel for recreation.

》It could even point to the desire to connect with a trusted friend and letting the joy of genuine connection restore their joy.

》 It could be a solitary activity like preparing an evening meal against the backdrop of some beautiful, gentle strains of instrumental music.

What I have learned in my journey is that committing to what is most authentic will be the most fruitful.

Letting time and space morph into a capsule in the hands of the Father to grant us the grace-gift of much-needed connection with His heart refuels, refreshes, and revitalizes our spirits to form the foundation of inner health and wholeness, as well as restful, productive work.

☆Be still and know☆

A brilliant way to spend time resting in the love of God is to enjoy the beauty of the stillness of His presence.

One such way I have found is ‘soaking.’ Simply put, soaking is a practice that enables us to breathe in and simply relax in His presence over some anointed strains of instrumental music. As we come into His glorious presence, music becomes a catalyst to connect us to the heartbeat of Heaven itself, thereby paving the way for a deep, heart-to-heart connection with the Lord.

Soaking in His presence allows us to spend quality time with Him, where we learn to release the emotional toxins we may have come with and just let God take over in as majestic, free-flowing, and effortless a manner as possible.

I have found soaking to be incredibly beneficial in tackling the effects of weariness and tiredness that seem to plague our lives so much. It is such a beautiful space to heal, rest and renew our strength. While many ministries online offer music for soaking, I recommend Eric Gilmour.

You can also experience soaking by creating an environment where we absorb anointed words of truth and prophecy over our lives as released by a man or woman of God through a trusted and reliable prophetic ministry. I have found spoken, prophetic words delicately arranged against the backdrop of some wonderful instrumental music through Graham Cooke particularly life-giving. Another soaking album in this regard is ‘Reflecting God’ by Liz Wright.

☆Biblical Meditation☆

The second way to enjoy stillness in the presence of God is a beautifully intimate spiritual practice called ‘Lectio Divina.’ Here we approach Scripture in a way that is so freeing and liberating that it needs to be experienced first hand. This practice teaches us to look at Scripture as a gift to be received, not a riddle to be solved or a problem to be dissected. We invite the Lord to breathe upon His Word in a way that makes it come alive.

We can commune with the Lord over anything that we are struggling with or that we believe the Lord is currently highlighting in our lives. It could be a passage on peace, love, forgiveness, or trust. So we can ask God to speak to us and receive the heart of the Lord in a way that is deeply personal and intimate, tapping into the opportunity to encounter Him as the Living Word as He breathes upon His Word and makes it real.

Though I have only recently taken up this practice, it has already worked wonders in bringing me closer to the heart of God in a way that is tangible and experiential. Apart from my one-on-one time with the Lord, I also use an app called ‘Lectio 365.’ Let me attach the link below:

The App

Though I have shared only some insights and revelations that I have personally gleaned from His heart in my walk with the Lord, I know that the Kingdom of God is deeper than the deepest ocean. All that He ever asks of us is to receive the life that He so freely offers so that we can share it with all those that we are called to love and serve in our generation.

After all, it is Christ in us and through us that accomplishes all things for His glory.

We need only be at rest to receive and release our truest inheritance — Christ in us, the hope of glory.

If this piece stirred something in you, I want to leave you with this prayer for when we feel overwhelmed. Life can be challenging – take time to breathe, receive, and let His peace settle you 🕊

Signed in a sweet surrender,

Simran 🩵