by Zach Vickery
We live in a culture that is constantly pushing us to more productivity. There’s never a shortage of self-help books and blogs full of hacks to make life easier and more productive. In some ways, this push is a good thing since it encourages us to be good stewards of the time God has given us. Since the Garden of Eden, God intended for humans to work. Scripture, especially the wisdom literature, gives us instruction on not wasting our time and instead on using time intentionally. For example, Proverbs 13:4 says, “The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied” (ESV).
However, we sometimes take these hard-work principles in Scripture to an extreme and neglect the many passages that encourage us to rest. This is the issue David Murray has focused on in his recent book Reset: Living a Grace-Paced Life in a Burnout Culture. Murray is a professor of Old Testament and practical theology at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary, as well as the pastor of Grand Rapids Free Reformed Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan. His life is certainly busy, and his ability to avoid burnout with so many obligations further qualifies him to write on the subject of rest.
Murray, though, has not always known how to manage so many responsibilities. It took a trip to the hospital due to blood clots in both lungs for him to realize that his life was far too busy. As a strong believer in God’s providence, Murray believes that this episode was God’s way of slowing him down. Murray outlines the lessons he learned from his near-death experience in Reset and encourages believers to live a “grace-paced life in a burnout culture.”
Murray’s argument is rooted in recognizing that we are only human and are thus limited in many ways. We are limited first because we are creatures, and creatures, by definition, are less than their Creator. Additionally, we are fallen creatures, which further complicates our limitations.[1] Once we recognize our limitations as human beings, we will then be in a better place to acknowledge our desperate need for rest.
Three specific discussions stood out the most to me. The first was Murray’s discussion on sleep. Before reading this book, I never thought about the fact that my sleep patterns and my ability to rest reflected my theology. Murray argues that “few things are as theological as sleep,” and “we all preach a sermon in and by our sleep.”[2] When we do not sleep enough, we preach that we do not trust God with our work, church, and families. We say we believe in God’s sovereignty, but we act as if God needs all the help we can give him. But when we take time to sleep, we demonstrate humility as we relinquish control and remind ourselves that God is sovereign without us and our work.[3]
The second discussion I found particularly helpful in Reset was Murray’s advice on our relationships with technology.[4] He points to recent research that shows that the average American consumes fifteen and a half hours of media per day. Murray argues that this over consumption of media contributes to our exhaustion and that we should intentionally manage how much media we allow into our lives.
We should be intentional not only about how much technology we are using but also about how we use it. Murray says that he mutes his phone and computer notifications during his working hours. This allows him to think clearly without the distraction of an email notification or text message that could derail his focus. He also says that he checks his phone, email, and social media only four to six times a day while most knowledge workers check their devices four to six times per hour. Another way Murray limits media consumption is by leaving his phone on a desk when he is home rather than carrying it around with him. This improves the quality of his time and of conversations with his wife and children.
This leads to the third discussion I found especially helpful in Murray’s work. Murray takes an entire chapter in Reset to discuss relationships and their place in living a grace-paced life. He focuses on five primary relationships: our relationships with God, with our wives,[5] with our children, with our pastors, and with our friends. The truth is that God did not create man to be alone. In fact, we see in Genesis 2 that it is not good for man to be alone. God has created us as relational beings, and we greatly benefit from taking time to nourish our relationships with Him and others. Murray argues that cultivating relationships takes time and energy, and if we give adequate time and energy, specifically to our relationship with God, “it helps us get a better perspective on life and order our priorities better. . . and it removes fear and anxiety.”[6]
Overall, Reset provides a much-needed perspective for Christians living in a culture that lends itself to burnout. Murray brilliantly weds practical advice with deep theological truths about who we are and how we function as human beings. This book teaches the Christian to be a good steward of his mind, body, time, and energy. If we steward these the way God intended, we put ourselves in a better position to have a positive influence on the world. As Murray clearly states, “There’s a deep embrace and enjoyment of the gospel of rest that is not only understood with our minds and spoken with our lips, but also demonstrated in peaceful, calm lives of total trust in the God of peace.”[7]
About
the Author: Zach Vickery lives in Gallatin, Tennessee, with his wife, Emily. He
is currently working on a PhD in biblical studies at the University of Glasgow.
He also holds degrees from Welch College and the University of Cambridge. In
his spare time, Zach enjoys spending time outdoors hunting and fishing.
[1]David Murray, Reset: Living a Grace-Paced Life in a Burnout Culture (Wheaton: Crossway, 2017), 42-43.
[2]Murray, Reset,54.
[3]Murray, 67.
[4]Murray, 91-96.
[5]Reset is primarily geared toward men and pastors, but David Murray and his wife Shona Murray have co-authored another edition of the book that is geared toward women, Refresh: Embracing a Grace-Paced Life in a World of Endless Demands (Wheaton: Crossway, 2017).
[6]Murray, Reset,158.
[7]Murray, 179.
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