we rest in thee, and in thy name we go

"The secret of [Hudson Taylor's] own strength was not far to seek. Whenever work permitted, Mr. Taylor was in the habit of turning to a little harmonium for refreshment, playing and singing many a favorite hymn, but always coming back to--

Jesus, I am resting, resting, in the joy of what Thou art; I am finding out the greatness of Thy loving heart.

...Mr. George Nichol... was with him on one occasion when some letters were handed in to his office, bringing news of serious rioting in two of the older stations of the Mission. Thinking that Mr. Taylor might wish to be alone, the younger man was about to withdraw when, to his surprise, someone began to whistle. It was the soft refrain of the same well-loved hymn:

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

Turning back, Mr. Nichol could not help exclaiming, "How can you whistle, when our friends are in so much danger!"

"Would you have me anxious and troubled?" was the quiet reply. "That would not help them, and would certainly incapacitate me for my work. I have just to roll the burden on the Lord."

Day and night this was his secret, "just to roll the burden on the Lord." Frequently those who were wakeful in the little house at Chinkiang might hear at two or three in the morning, the soft refrain of Mr. Taylor's favorite hymn. He had learned that, for him, only one life was possible--just that blessed life of resting and rejoicing in the Lord under all circumstances, while he dealt with the difficulties, inward and outward, great and small." --Hudson Taylor's Spiritual Secret, Dr. & Mrs. Howard Taylor

It's tempting to view resting in Jesus as the easy way out. But is it?

Jesus gave himself up to the Father's will, rested in the Father's will--and it caused Him to sweat great drops of blood.

Psalm 69:2 speaks of deep waters... Lilias Trotter wrote this way: “‘I am come into deep waters’ took on a new meaning this morning.  It started with perplexing matters concerning the future.  Then it dawned that shallow waters were a place where you can neither sink nor swim, but in deep waters it is one or the other:  ‘waters to swim in’ – not to float in.  Swimming is the intense, most strenuous form of motion – all of you is involved in it – and every inch of you is in abandonment of rest upon the water that bears you up.” 

The children of Israel, backed against the Red Sea... Egypt's entire army at their heels... every impulse would be to run, every nerve would be tensed to flee. But Moses says, Stand still. See the salvation which the Lord will accomplish for you.

In that moment, was it easy for Israel to stand still? Easy to rest in the confidence that God would fight for them? Or was it perhaps the intense, most strenuous form of motion...

Hebrews 9:14 says that Jesus offered himself to God through the eternal Spirit... The Son of Man, the Word made flesh, did not have enough strength, enough will-power, enough resolve, to abandon himself to the Father and rest in the Father. But the Spirit... through the eternal Spirit... Jesus offered himself to God, and rested in the Father.

"...the moment the soul yields itself to obey, the Lord Himself gives the strength and joy to do it." -- Andrew Murray