Give Your Soul a Vacation!

When life feels overwhelming and your soul is exhausted, it’s time to pause and reset. This article explores how Jesus invites us to find rest for both our bodies and our inner lives. It also explains why your soul needs a vacation. Learn how peace, refreshment, and spiritual renewal begin by changing your approach and letting God carry your cares.

One of the most comforting scriptures in the Bible is Matthew 11:28 (AMPC). In this verse, Jesus tells us, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy-laden and overburdened, and I will cause you to rest. [I will ease and relieve and refresh your souls.]”

I think it’s interesting to note here that Jesus said He would “ease and relieve and refresh” our souls, not our bodies. It sounds like He’s saying we need to give our souls a vacation.

The Inner and Outer Lives

We all have two lives: an inner life and an outer life. Your inner life is your soul life, which includes your mind, will, and emotions. Your outer life is your physical life. And while God cares about every detail of your life, He is more concerned with your inner life than your outer life.

I have found that it’s possible to give your body rest but not your soul. For example, have you ever had trouble going to sleep because you were worrying about a problem and couldn’t stop thinking about it? This kind of activity just wears us out inwardly. We can also wear out our souls with too many thoughts running on in our minds, too many decisions to make, too much talking, and too much multitasking. Worry, fear, excessive concern about what other people think, and insecurity also commonly wear people out and prevent them from having any peace.

How to Protect Your Peace and Overcome Everyday Frustrations

I remember when I used to be jealous of Dave and the peace he had. I wore myself out most of the time, worrying about problems, but he didn’t. We had the same problems, but while they wore me out, Dave was still peaceful and happy because he would cast his cares on God. One of his favorite scriptures is 1 Peter 5:7, which says, “Cast all your anxiety on [God] because he cares for you” (NIV). And even now, anytime someone goes to Dave with a problem, he’ll encourage them to “cast your care” and give them that scripture.

He wouldn’t get upset when I was upset, which used to make me so mad, but eventually, I got to the place where I was desperate to have what he had. So I prayed and told God I would do whatever I had to do to be peaceful, and He taught me how to change my approach to life.

The Revelation That Changed My Life

I came to realize that the world is not going to change, the devil is not going to change, and all of the people who bother me probably aren’t going to change, so I have to decide to change.

In John 14:27 (AMP), Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you; My [own] peace I now give … to you. … Do not let your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. [Stop allowing yourselves to be agitated and disturbed, and do not permit yourselves to be fearful and intimidated and cowardly and unsettled.]” So we can be peaceful and make the decision not to be troubled, afraid, agitated, and disturbed, but it won’t just happen automatically.

The truth is, we won’t have peace if we don’t pursue it on purpose, because there will always be opportunities to get upset or offended about something. For example, you lose your car keys when you’re running late, or you get caught in a traffic jam, or someone at work receives the promotion you wanted, or the electric company raises the bill higher than you expected … and on and on. You can face an endless cycle of stuff that happens that makes you upset.

We also have to remember that we have an enemy who wants to keep us worn out. The devil steals our peace and works hard to set us up to get upset. But we can learn how to change our approach so we don’t live upset all of the time. And Jesus gives us the best example to follow.

The Key to Living in Peace

Jesus didn’t conform to the world—He walked in the Spirit. When He felt tired and pressured by the crowds, He walked away. He took time to rest, and He spent time in prayer, alone with the Father. He knew He couldn’t truly help others without first refreshing Himself.

It’s so easy to let other people’s needs and emergencies control and manipulate us. And when we let others run our lives, we can get to the point that we’re falling apart! It’s fine to want to help or please people. But we must take care of ourselves, stay calm, and not let small things upset us.

Make the decision today to commit your ways to the Lord and rest in Him. Cast your cares on Him, knowing He loves. He cares for you in every situation of your life. He’ll meet you where you are and ease, relieve and refresh your soul!

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