I Will Give You Rest

Matthew 11:28
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

A week ago today, our dishwasher gives up the ghost.

I had just run a successful load and emptied it, when my husband, Danny, decides it's high time to clean the detachable vents in our stove hood.  (And believe me, with all the cooking he does, they need it often!)  But no sooner has he arranged the vents on the racks, selected the wash cycle, and pressed start, when the washer simply stops, it's "error" code flashing impudently, daring us to resolve the problem.

Frustrated, Danny tries other wash cycles to see if the appliance will get over itself.  Sadly, his efforts are fruitless.  When he researches the error code on line, the glaring cause points to the control panel itself.  And the cost to repair that?  Five-hundred dollars!

"At this rate," Danny admits, "I might as well bite the bullet and order us a new dishwasher."

"Honey, you don't have to right now if you don't want to spend the money," I tell him.  "I really don't mind washing dishes by hand."

"No, no, I don't want you to have to do that," Danny insists.  "I'll find a deal and order one today."

He does just that, and the new dishwasher is scheduled to be delivered and installed on the very day you are reading this post.

Then something miraculous happens.

In the wee hours of Monday morning, our house loses electricity.  When Danny gets up to go to work, he notices that the power failure light on the supposedly deceased dishwasher is brightly blinking.  He opens and shuts the washer door to turn the light off.

But it gets him to thinking . . .

When Danny arrives home that evening, he announces, "I'm going to try and run the dishwasher one more time.  I have a hunch that the power outage just might have reset its brain."

"Like a reboot on a computer?"  I ask hopefully.

"Exactly!"

I am skeptical, but agree it's worth a try.  Wonder of wonders!  The dishwasher completes a full cycle without a glitch!

Stunned, and beside ourselves with delight, Danny observes, "But before I cancel the order, let's wait and run it again tomorrow, just to be sure."

We do, and once again, the old dishwasher renders a stellar performance!

Yes, it could be the power outage corrected the problem, but I have another theory.  Never in the four years we've owned this dishwasher have we ever, ever run back-to-back loads.  It's always enjoyed a recuperative rest for at least a day, if not longer.

Did it simply need to be still?  To catch its breath before charging ahead?

That, we will never know.

But this I do know:  You and I need to rest in the Lord, regularly and often.  We can't keep up a frantic pace, no matter how many responsibilities and "to-dos" we have, and not expect to run out of steam.  It's inevitable.

So you who are weary and whose burdens are many, will you accept Jesus' invitation to lay them at His feet today?  He will give you rest and the peace of God, which passes all understanding.

The very rest you need to keep going for His glory.

~

Speaking of rest, Danny and I are headed to Jekyll Island this coming Monday for a much needed vacation.  I will not be blogging next week, and will probably not visit any of your blogs during that time as I plan to keep all social media interactions to a minimum.  After all, how often is it we get to go to the beach?  I plan to enjoy every moment.

See you back here on Tuesday, September 27th.

Love and blessings, always!