So it’s that time of the semester…

…you know what we’re talking about.  We are neck-deep in the semester, and with all the big projects, mid-terms, and finals looming in the future, it can feel like we are far from the finish line.  So we have the solution for you…are you ready?  REST  That’s right…take a break and rest.  You might be saying, “I don't have time to rest!  I have a cumulative final at the end of the semester and have to work to keep all that stuff I learned from falling out my head!”  Or “I have an end of semester group project and I’m the only one whose doing my part and now I have to start doing other peoples parts!”  (Not cool BTW guys, c’mon!). Rest can come at Thanksgiving Break, or after the semester is over, right?  What if we told you that you have it backwards?  What if we told you that instead of resting after you work, that you should start working after you rest?

The bible is a weird book.  It has all these crazy stories involving some seemingly crazy people.  (I mean, who lays on their side and cooks their food with poop for half-a-year to prove a point,  Yeah…that’s in there!) Then, it talks about how everything was created in seven days, six days really.  (Ummm, science much?) Weirder still, it talks about how when everything was created, that at the end of each day it was night, then it was day, and that it was good.  Well, the world seems less than good sometimes.  Oh, and it’s day then night guys.  You can’t even get that right?!?  Or did they?

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In the culture that the bible originated from, they took these weird stories and weird people very seriously.  (Funny enough, it made them a kinda weird group of folks.)  They had weird customs and rules.  They even had a weird idea on day-to-day life.  To them, the day started at night.  (Wait..what?!?). To them, the day started with rest and ended with work. To them, their best work came after their best rest.  In fact, they began each week by taking a whole day off and …you guessed it…rested.  Interesting thing, cultures have come and gone on this planet, but these weird folks have been here the whole time and have done some pretty amazing things that have changed the planet forever.

So…what would happen if we made a change about how we think about our day?  What if we changed the way we think about work and rest?  What if we start to think that our day begins at night?  What if instead of resting from our work, we work from our rest?  Maybe instead of falling behind, we’ll actually get ahead.  Maybe, instead of doing our worst work, we’ll do our best work.  Maybe we won't be stressed, but feel…here’s another weird word…blessed.