Relax…Relax? Relax!? By Laurie Jackson 1/10/2012

Relax…Relax? Relax!? By Laurie Jackson 1/10/2012

I have not heard the word “Relax” in very many conferences, motivational seminars or even sermons that I’ve attended throughout the many years, but on the Treadmill today I noticed that I was tensing up my shoulders and had to force myself to “Relax.” It felt soooo much better when I relaxed, but yet I was running 12-minute miles? This made me start thinking about the wisdom from a well-known passage, Hebrews 4:11 “Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest,….” Make every “effort to rest???” Isn’t this an oxymoron? The King James Version is even better, “Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest,..”

This revelation of wisdom keeps growing in my heart and getting so much more fruitful. I can see the truth of it everywhere now. Running for instance scientifically causes endorphins in our bodies to stimulate them to actually relax. Exercise does this to everyone. Right now I feel very relaxed, not tired, weary or hyped and anxious but serene, energetic and excited for the day. I just ran 5 miles less then an hour ago. One of the reason’s I love to run is because it relaxes me. I’ve had tons of issues with anxiety disorders in all their forms; depression, obsessive compulsive, and Attention Deficit are all under the umbrella of anxiety disorders. I’ve even had trouble with grinding my teeth and caused myself to get TMJ.


The truth is that work actually is part of relaxing. Oh my goodness did I just write that? Seriously, when you are in bed all day, depressed, negative and unmotivated do you really feel relaxed? I feel relaxed when I’m not motivated by fear but rather hope and expectation for the good and when I’m active doing fun stuff. As a believer in Christ, this was Gods huge revelation from the old to the New Testament. The old, was being fulfilled with the “Work” done in the New. Jesus did the work so we can relax.

I’ve struggled with this for years and honestly I still catch myself constantly trying to live in the “old” instead of just relax in the “new.”

God is all about the new! His mercies are new every morning, the new wine, the new heart, and the new covenant! It has taken many years for me to understand that I had the option to relax into Gods new stuff. Who knew? Peter Finally figured it out, John pretty much knew from the beginning and Paul found out the hard way. Me? It’s like I can relate to all three of these characters. I’m so glad I’ve “tasted” this rest. I’ve entered into His actual New Covenant. God’s truth talks about the problem with forgetting this and missing out on this new stuff all over his word. Galatians 5:4 is one of my favorite reminders to relax into the new stuff. “Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.”

Let me run back to the running analogy. As I run, I begin relaxing and the warmer I get the easier it seems. When I’ve been running regularly this is so easy. When I get out of shape and stop the running it feels harder at first but our bodies have muscle memory and are quick to find the way again.

I’d like to say that we are born to run. Look at the children it’s natural and normal, no one is telling them to do this? We are also born to know God and receive his love and goodness.

So Relax… but to get there we may have to seek, wrestle with the truth, and even labor to find this Resting and relaxing place. I’m learning that you can run, set goals, be motivated and play hard and relax all at the same time. I found this place but God keeps reminding me to continue the work in takes to remain here. Believing truth requires us to take “old” thoughts and choose to replace them with the “new” stuff. Having an amazing resting heart rate requires us to raise our heart rate a few times a week. Hebrew 12:1 says it best, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” Enjoy the run… and I’ll meet you at the finish line.