Sermon Illustration: Rest

Recently, the Campus Pastors of Brentwood Baptist preached a message aimed to help spiritual leaders refresh their souls and renew their relationship with the Lord.

Jay Strother, the Campus and Teaching Pastor at The Church at Station Hill, passed along a unique and convicting version of the 23rd Psalm. It is a fantastic illustration to use in order to help our people realize just how busy we are and just how needy we are to stop and enjoy God’s presence.

Psalm 23 Antithesis
(Marcia Hornok)

The clock is my dictator, I shall not rest.

It makes me lie down only when exhausted.

It leads me to deep depression.

It hounds my soul.

It leads me in circles of frenzy for activity’s sake.

Even though I run frantically from task to task,

I will never get it all done,

For my “ideal” is with me.

Deadlines and my need for approval, they drive me.

They demand performance from me, beyond the limits of my schedule.  They anoint my head with migraines.

My in-basket overflows.

Surely fatigue and time pressure shall follow me all the days of my life,

And I will dwell in the bonds of frustration forever.