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“He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters, He restores my soul” (Psalm 23:2-3, NIV).
Recently, I spoke at a local private school about the masks we tend to wear as Christians. Fitting for Halloween, our masks look less like werewolves and vampires, and more like “I’m fine,” “I’m good,” and “I’m okay.” Instead of telling the truth, we cover our exhaustion with common clichés. Not only that, but we hustle to feel okay. As if our souls can be fixed through productivity, perfectionism, self-improvement, or even crazy amounts of ministry.
The reality is that, as much as we push, pull, and strive, healing, emotionally, spiritually, and mentally, isn’t something we can rush or earn. God isn’t keeping track of tally marks in Heaven and awarding gold stars. Why? Because rest is something we receive. It’s a gift. It’s something we can’t earn or produce ourselves into achieving, no matter what culture thinks about this.
In a trying season, I memorized Psalm 23. In times of distress and anxiety, I recite the words to myself over and over again. The more I read them, the more one fact stands out to me: God makes me lie down in green pastures. God is who leads me beside quiet waters. God is who restores my soul. Are you picking up on the pattern?
This Psalm reminds me that God makes us lie down because sometimes (and most of the time), we won’t choose rest for ourselves. The Lord knows our habits and tendencies. He knows and understands our addictions to being busy, productivity, and trying to earn our worth. And yet, God doesn’t ask us to fix ourselves. He invites us to be still long enough to be restored. To let Him in. To allow Him to do what only He can do. Because healing happens in stillness and not striving.
For years, I’ve struggled to internalize this message. I have my own bad habits and tendencies that tell me I need to hustle for healing. I tend to think that if I just read the right verse, pray like them, or work harder, I’ll feel whole. But here’s the truth: God restores what we can’t fix or repair on our own. And true restoration comes when we learn to lay it all down. It comes when we surrender and lay down the striving, acknowledging that we can’t save or fix ourselves, and that’s okay. That’s the way Christ created and intended it to be.
If you’re struggling to rest in these truths and receive the rest by still waters that Christ offers today, I want to offer 3 small ways to stop husting for healing: