Stopping to Rest

"Come to me all who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28).  Doesn't that sound amazing?  In our 2021 world it feels like we are constantly rushing around, trying to check off every item on our never ending to-do list, only to wake up the next morning with a multitude of items you will never be able to finish.  In a world like that, the promise of rest sounds refreshing and reinvigorating.  

For many of us, the idea of rest is foreign.  We don't know what it even takes for us to be able to rest.  Then when we finally get time to rest, we are left wondering what to do with ourselves.  Performance has become our identity.  And yet rest slaps performance in the face and tells it to stop.  And it is when we stop that we are able to put the pieces of our identity back into place as we look at who God is and how His attributes shape the way we view our lives.  Thus, rest is something we all need from time to time.  

In light of our need for rest, the elders of Sunbury City Church have decided to grant Josh Laubach, Deacon of Worship, Finance, and a missional community leader a period of rest, called a sabbatical.  For the past, nearly 9 years, Josh has faithfully served the congregation of Sunbury City Church from leading worship, to ensuring sound quality, to making sure the bills are paid so the lights can stay on, on top of leading a group of men, women, and kids to know the Lord and grow in Him.  Just by reading that list of all Josh is invovled in you might become tired.  This man has sacrificially served our church well.  And out of a heart of gratitude and thanks, the elders decided to grant Josh 6 weeks, starting August 15th and ending September 19th where he can enter a season of rest.  

What does this rest mean for Josh and his family? The hope of the elders is that Josh is able to use the time he would typically prepare and lead to instead recouperate and enjoy the Lord, while engaging his family.  This means that each of these 6 weeks we will have guest worship leaders, we will have guest sound board operaters, and even guest missional community leaders so Josh can simply attend and be ministered to.  

What does this mean for the church? Well if you see Josh and his family, do your best to simply love and care about him as a person.  If at all possible, refrain from discussing his typical duties at Sunbury City Church and simply engage him as the man God has called him to be.  Enjoy he and his family as people created in the image of God.  And pray for the Laubachs to receive rest from the Lord during this season and that they might be renewed as Josh reengages leadership on September 26th.  

Rest is good for the heart, for the mind, and for the body.  Let's love our brother who has so loved us, by stepping up and serving on his behalf!