RESTING

 A monthly series on a great hymn of the faith

J. Hudson Taylor, known for his vision to evangelize all of China, had his share of faith-discouraging hard times. That especially included the trials and losses of the 1899-1900 “Boxer Rebellion,” so named because the Chinese rebels were known for their boxing and martial arts skills. They killed nearly eighty of Taylor's missionaries during that bloody time.

One of the slain missionaries was brother to Jean Pigott, an Irish poet and hymn lyricist. Though she lived to only age 37, her legacy included the lyrics to “Jesus, I am Resting, Resting.” That hymn reportedly brought Taylor great comfort during his greatest trials as a missionary leader. It's said that when the worries and losses of leading the mission nearly overwhelmed him, he'd go to his little reed organ and sing the hymn that expressed his greatest need.

The hymn also expressed in music and lyrics the Biblical truths from John 15, about abiding in Christ—illustrated by vines “abiding in” the branch (Jesus) and finding their strength there. A fellow missionary had written Hudson a note of biblical encouragement, sharing how he'd come to realize the power of “abiding” in his own struggles. The friend wrote: “But how to get faith strengthened? Not by striving after faith but by resting on the Faithful One.”

The hymn impacted Taylor so much that he often had his missionaries sing it with him. It didn't take away the bloody political problem. It's estimated that 100,000 died (including 200-250 foreigners, mostly Christian missionaries) during the Boxer Rebellion. But the hymn lifted their eyes from the discouraging political situation to the One who created and called them, and Who promised eternal life.

The words that Miss Pigott used to express “abiding” are worth thinking about. She wrote about resting in the Lord, gazing on Him, being satisfied at the deepest level through contemplating His presence and gifts. The hymn begins:

Jesus, I am resting, resting, in the joy of what Thou art;

I am finding out the greatness of thy loving heart.

Thou hast bid me gaze upon Thee, And thy beauty fills my soul,

For by thy transforming power, Thou hast made me whole.

At least two tunes are associated with this hymn. This video features a menu's chorus singing it with the traditional music.

Jesus I am Resting, Resting - Bing video

The other tune with beautiful scenery can be found here:

Jesus, I am resting - Bing video

Chill!

My now-adult children taught me a new vocabulary word, “chill,” implying cool it, let it go, leave me alone. My son’s housecat, “Rosebud,” expresses it better than anyone (or any critter) I know. She seems to consider it her royal privilege to take over the recliner and “chill,” despite the presence of two busy little boys, 18 months and three years, in the same room.

Oh, cats.

But I’m leaning that stopping to “chill” isn’t all that bad.  With the memory lapses of aging, I find myself writing a lot of “remember” or “do” lists. Those lists glare at me and point fingers as they say, “You can do this, don’t be slack!”  But even as I check off my tasks, underneath all that busyness rumbles concern for friends and loved ones troubled by family problems, illnesses, and disappointments.

But sometimes I get tired.  Out of steam.  I need to sit down in my favorite recliner, get those feet up, sip some water, and take a life break.  Do I continue to mull over those problems? Well, yes--until the Lord reminds me to “chill.”  Take a time-out, with Him, and in my nearby Bible.

One of my favorite psalms admonishes me:

Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for Him. (Psalm 37:7 NIV).
“Be still” is also translated “rest” in the King James and New American standard versions.  It’s an interesting word in the original Hebrew, daman, and used only one other place in the Bible, in Job 30:27.  There, it is paired with a negative so means “not rest.” Job is complaining about his circumstances and his unsympathetic friends, so much so that he can’t “be still.”  Here’s how "not"-daman (not rest) has been translated (along with possible digestive issues they imply):
“My bowels boiled, and rested not.” (KJV)  [The "trots"?]
“The churning inside me never stops.” (NIV) [IBS? Bloating?]
“I am seething within, and cannot relax.” (NASB) [GERD?]

When I watch Rosebud “chill,” she certainly isn’t worrying herself into an upset stomach.  Sometimes she’s purring, happy to have a place for a time-out, at least until a busy little guy interrupts her solitude. Then she's off to another quiet place rather than fret (or growl) over the problem. (Sometimes, that "other place" is her S-curved scratching post.) Interestingly, the phrase “do not fret” occurs three times in the first eight verses of Psalm 37.  I think God is trying to tell us something about how we approach life....maybe that sometimes we need to take a “chill” break--with Him--for perspective.

Rest assured

Pictures of contentment, these horses reminded me that life is a rhythm of activity and rest. God’s plan is a balanced life of service and renewal that brings Him glory. It’s the sense of “rightness” conveyed by Isaiah 30:15:
            In repentance and rest is your salvation,
            In quietness and trust is your strength.
This verse is one you might find on a plaque in a religious gift shop. But be careful of scripture plucked out of context. It’s embedded in a chapter full of reprimands for national obstinacy. With vicious northern empires chewing away at their borders, the Jews decided God’s protection wasn’t enough. So they decided to form an alliance with a heathen nation to the south, Egypt. Time would prove the folly of that treaty.

“Return to me for safety,” God was telling them through the prophet Isaiah. “Rest in me. Quietly trust me instead of making a frenzied alliance with Egypt.”

Of course, they didn’t, and in 606 B.C. the nation was overwhelmed by the Babylonian powerhouse. Yet 2,600 years later, the principle still speaks. We’re prone to fall on our faces in failure when we rely on something other than God. For some, it’s technology, fame, beauty, or wealth. In the end, all these fail.

So what do “repentance, rest, quietness, and trust” look like in real life?  Longtime Billy Graham evangelist Leighton Ford, in his book The Attentive Life (IVP, 2008) offered one idea. When he suffered a heart attack, his son-in-law brought those words to his attention. Ford began praying those words in his morning walk and wrote them daily in his journal. “They became a reminder to slow down,” he wrote, “to savor the goodness of the Lord each moment, to remind myself that I did not have to ‘do it now’ every time a new thought came, to ruthlessly eliminate hurry from my life and soul” (p. 174).

If your life has gotten so busy that there’s little space for spiritual rest, you too may need to absorb the truths of this verse. Don’t worry about finding it somewhere on a plaque. Write it on an index card and post it where you can see it, like the bathroom mirror, car dash, or a corner of your laptop. “Rest” assured: the reminder will be helpful.