The Grands Letter

Dear Grands,

Mark 6:31, “And He said to them, ‘Come away by yourselves to a lonely

place and rest a while.’ (For there were many people coming and going,

and they did not even have time to eat).”

The inimitable Rev. Vance Havner used to say, “The Bible says, ‘Come ye

apart and rest awhile.’ And if you don’t come apart you will soon come

apart.” He had some hilarious one and two-liners. But he was right.

Do you know that the word “rest,” and its complementary words resting,

rested, and the like, are mentioned over 340 times in the Bible? One of

the proofs that Jesus possessed a human nature as well as a divine one,

is in Mark 4:31. They were all in a boat crossing the Sea of Galilee. “And

He Himself was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they awoke Him…”

Some people beat themselves up for stopping their daily chores to rest.

How foolish that is! The Greek word for “rest” is anapauesthe. It means

both spiritual and bodily rest. It means to take it easy, relieve yourself from

work. You will be refreshed and revived, both mentally and physically.

What’s more, the tense of anapauesthe is present imperative! — Do it!!

There is a time to work and a time to play. There is a time to start and a

time to stop. Getting all of that in place as it ought to be is a challenge.

Nevertheless, it is needful for both your mind and your body. When I was

in college, I was told to study for 30 minutes and take a 10-minute rest;

then study for another 30 minutes and take another 10-minute rest. I

have to confess that I never followed that pattern with precision, but I did

learn that rest was as valuable to study as reading.

Whatever pattern you follow, do get sufficient rest! Turn your mind away

from the tasks at hand. The LORD is in that rest. You will see.

We continually love and pray for you daily,

Nana & Dado III

Gene L. Jeffries, Th.D.

Springdale, Arkansas

“We never know that God is all we need

until He becomes all that we have.”