From Edie: Feeling overwhelmed as a writer? Discover what biblical rest really means and how Jesus’ invitation in Matthew 11:28 can help you reset, recharge, and overcome creative burnout.
What Does Rest Mean for Writers? A Biblical Guide to Overcoming Burnout
by Tim Suddeth @TimSuddeth
Recently, I was on the treadmill in the gym warming up. (I know. I shouldn’t talk about going to the gym. But when it comes to the gym, and if you’ve ever met me, you know. My body type is definitely a tell me, not a show me bod.) I was doing fine for the first few minutes, then I cranked it up. My lungs gasped, “No mas.” They weren’t ready for the challenge.
Don’t we often feel the same way in our lives? Like someone has cranked it up and left it there for us to hang on to? It happens in all our lives, whether it’s at work, with your kids, or if you have caregiving responsibilities. It’s like you’re trying your best to just make it through, but everything else is in hyper-speed.
We often go through this in our writings. Pending deadlines, a crashed website, trying to keep your always-hungry social media accounts fed — the demands are constant and endless. The ideas in your head are begging to be let out on paper, but you only have so much time, so much creative energy.
And the last thing you feel you have time for is rest. We know we are tired, depleted, and limping by. But we don’t see any way we can take time out. I mean, isn’t the fact that I don’t have enough time the problem?
Leave it to Jesus to have the solution to our problem. Why am I surprised?
In Matthew 11:28 (NIV), Jesus told His disciples, “Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
What Does Rest Mean for the Writer?
I know a lot of us go to this verse to find comfort. But I’m afraid that we have a general misunderstanding of what it means.
1. Rest is NOT just inactivity.
Resting means not only hitting the hammock. Sometimes, we need to sit down, take some time off from either the physical or the mental strain we’re under, and catch our breaths. We know how a good night’s sleep can change one’s perspective.
And sleep is important. They’ve found it improves our moods, our memories, our immunities, even our productivity. So taking a rest can include taking a quick snooze, but that isn’t its only meaning.
2. Rest is to reset.
Often when we feel exhausted and overwhelmed, what we need isn’t just sleep; it’s also to make a reset. It’s taking the opportunity to assess your goals versus where you are. Is my draft sticking to the outline, or do I need to make a correction? Are my queries or submissions being considered, or do I need to look at how and to whom I’m sending them? If I’m sending my Amish romance to an agent I met at a sci-fi conference, I will need to reassess that.
Teaching and social media are obvious choices where we need to be on alert. Social media constantly changes, and it’s easy to add, add, add without realizing that you’ve begun duplicating your efforts. Or you’ve gotten away from the purpose or audience you initially targeted.
Is the thing you’re adding in line with your goals? Should it replace something you’re already doing?
Go back to what motivated you in the first place to begin this project. That is why it’s often wise to document why you are writing a book, or class, or study. The longer it takes, the easier it is to forget your why and to lose the joy you started with.
3. Rest is to recharge.
We‘ve heard about the need to recharge our internal batteries. That means restoring both our energy and our motivation. It amazes me how tired I become after staring at my screen and creating a new world, new characters, and revealing a different mindset. Sometimes writing about an activity is as draining as doing the activity. Even though you aren’t running through a park, you’re just using four fingers. (I know. I’m bragging again. It took me a long time to add those additional two.)
Sometimes the best way to recharge is to do something fun. Take a walk, call up some friends, or break out a craft. Do something to take your mind off what has become a chore. Usually when you go back, you will find you have renewed energy.
4. Rest is to refocus.
After taking time to reset and recharge, then we can refocus. Are we on the right path? Have we added too much stuff to our plate? Are we headed toward the right goal?
5. Rest is to realize what God has done and is doing in our lives.
And that is another reason that taking a time of rest is so important to us. It allows us to acknowledge again the hand that God has in our lives. It’s easy to get so wrapped up in our efforts, our responsibilities, our plans, that we ignore or miss what He has done for us. The gifts He has given us. The opportunities and people He has put in our lives. The paths He has prepared for us.
Sometimes we seem to struggle so hard to make a way through the briars and vines when He has cleared a path right beside us. Jesus saw the need for rest with His disciples. In Mark 6:31, the crowd demanded so much of the disciples that Jesus told them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.”
And the same truth remains for us. You may think it will be faster to pass the gas station instead of stopping when the light flashes on your dash, but when you’re sitting by the road, the stop at the station doesn’t seem like an inconvenience at all.
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