Looking Above Episode 49 - Restlessness

We have made it to the final episode of the season on rest. In this episode, Karen and Brooklyn discuss restlessness and why we struggle to find our rest in God. As St. Augustine said, "Our hearts are restless until they rest in You." The world contributes to our restlessness and spews empty promises of rest. But true rest is found in God and in living according to His ways. After listening, it would be highly valuable to sit down and talk with a friend or small group about these questions:

1. What does restlessness look like for you?
2. How do you most often behave when you're restless? - do you go(take a vacation, move, get a new job, change something), do (serve, volunteer, help someone, take a class, add activities) or buy(a new house, a new car, a new outift, food, acquire something)?
3. What lies do you believe about rest that keep you from resting? (Things will fall apart. You need to help others. You need to be worried. Everything depends on your work. Rest is lazy. Prove your worth. It won't be good unless you do it. Etc.)
4. Read Isaiah 28:12 and Jeremiah 6:16. God offers rest, but we are reluctant to obey. Why are we more likely to do what the world suggests than to do things God's way?
5. Has your restlessness ever led you back to God? How so?
6. "Jesus is inviting us to rest. But please understand what this rest is that He offers. It is not rest from life - but rest in life." - Warren Wiersbe

So many of the world's options are to rest from life (an escape), but God offers rest in the midst of life. Why is that the better option?

1. Discuss the story of Jesus and the disciples in the midst of the storm. How did their responses differ? Who are you more like - the restless disciples, or the resting Jesus?
2. Read Psalm 91:1 How do we live in the shelter of the Most High and develop the habit of resting in God? How do we train ourselves to turn to God and maintain a peace amidst a storm? What part does prayer play?
3. Are you an agent of rest or an agent of restlessness? Do you help others find rest? Or are you more prone to working for the enemy? Why is this?
4. What can you do this week to be an agent of rest? How can you help someone else find rest in God amidst their storm?