Fifteen years ago, our lives were filled with stress and busyness. While I (Joanna) thought I was doing everything right to work FOR my family by homeschooling during the day and working at night, I didn’t see that my relationship with my husband and my kids was struggling.

Have you ever felt that way? We can get so wrapped up in doing and being productive that we miss out on what matters most. That’s not to say that doing things is wrong, but we often sacrifice necessary good things to pursue other good things. And when this happens, we forget to care for our souls with the things that matter most.

In this episode, we are exploring how to move into a life where we can work with purpose and passion, all while having a deep sense of peace and rest at the same time. To help us do that is our guest, Dr. Laurel Emory. Laurel is a writer, speaker, podcaster, and accomplished business and leadership coach. Her heart is centered on helping others cultivate confidence and joy in life and work.

Laurel shares with us:

• The importance of valuing things outside of what is productive
• Signs that God is inviting you to rest
• Additional resources to help you as you pursue rest
• And more!

We hope you enjoy this conversation!

Links:

• Connect with Laurel on Instagram, Facebook, or her website
• [Podcast] Courage Becomes Her
• [BOOK] Sacred Pathways: Nine Ways to Connect with God
• [BOOK] Finding Spiritual Whitespace: Awakening Your Soul to Rest
• [BOOK] The Road Back to You: An Enneagram Journey to Self-Discovery
• [BOOK] Ruthless Trust: The Ragamuffin’s Path to God
• [BOOK] The Rest of God: Restoring Your Soul by Restoring Sabbath
• [BOOK] Nothing to Prove: Why We Can Stop Trying So Hard
• [BOOK] Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World
• [BOOK] Boundaries: When to Say Yes, How to Say No To Take Control of Your Life

Our Takeaways:

1) Stop resisting rest. Our culture glorifies doing things. We can become so focused on productivity and holding our own world together that we can no longer lean on others, including God, to help us. But rest is a normal part of life that was put on display for us at the beginning of the Bible. God designed us to have a regular rhythm of rest and we need to accept His invitation to do so and trust Him to hold the world together.

2) Know the signs that you need rest. The signs that you need rest will look different for each person and it may change depending on the season of life you are in. If you are unaware what the signs are that you need rest, start by taking some time to assess what you value. Next, consider how you feel when you miss out on the things that you value. For me, it was realizing that I hadn’t made eye contact with my children or had time to hug them while I was balancing homeschooling and working. Anytime I saw these signs, this became a sure sign that I was missing out on the things that I valued and I needed to prioritize rest.

3) Work and rest are not in conflict. It can often feel like the opposite is true! But the work we do is commissioned by God, not to overtake us, but as a means to be good stewards, provide for our families, and pursue our passions. When work and rest are in balance in our lives we can clearly see they were never meant to be in conflict. Having a healthy rhythm of rest is just as important as having a healthy work life and God has called us to do both!

Meet Our Guest