Do you ever wish you could just slow down and discover who you’d be if your life wasn’t filled with so much rush?
The other day my friend told me she felt lost: lost in the hurry of carpool and kids, deadlines and dirty laundry… and she was tired, and I shared with her some things I’ve been learning through my friend Bonne Gray’s beautiful book Finding Spiritual Whitespace: Awakening Your Soul to Rest.
In, Bonnie shares how “underneath all of the stress and expectations we put on ourselves, and the ones that others put on us, our souls long for space to breathe.” Bonnie calls it “soul rest: a place where we can rest, not in what we could be or what we should be, but just as we are. Jesus invites us to come to Him when we’re struggling and carrying heavy loads, so He can give us rest.”
Today I’ve invited, Bonnie to share a peek into her heart and inside the pages of her beautiful book, Finding Spiritual Whitespace.
“I once felt lost and tired.
Even though no one could tell. By looking at my life from the outside.
But, deep inside, in my secret heart of hearts, I’ve always wanted something I could never quite keep a hold of — not long enough to make it my everyday home. For my soul and for the me that wanted to be free.
I’ve always wanted to know who I really could be — if I was free to rest.
Do you ever wish life could be different? That somehow you could just rest?
Underneath all the stress, the expectations we put on ourselves and the ones others put on us, we all long for space.
Space to breathe.
Space to just be me.
Where we can be real.
To take care of our hearts, with the grace and kindness we often pour out to others.
We don’t want to be numb anymore.
Just doing. Coping. Surviving.
All the while, there is a part of us that longs to come alive.
The part of us who longs for beauty, even though the daily road feels rough. Or even broken.
The part of us who remembers what it’s like to have desires is hungering for quiet. For rest.
Who wants to feel more intimately connected with God.
To our dreams.
To our stories.
To who we really are deep inside.
Who doesn’t want to hide.
Who longs to be known.
With others.
A Deeper Part
There’s a deeper part of us who longs to uncover the stories we’re living in our everyday lives — hidden — so that they can be shared.
We don’t want to journey alone.
We don’t have to.
What we all long for is deeper rest.
Refreshment.
Comfort.
Real conversation.
Encouragement.
Peace.
Beauty.
As is.
What we all long for is soul rest.
Soul rest is a kind of rest we can savor — not as we should be. Nor as we ought to be.
We can enjoy rest for our souls — as we are.
This ache for soul rest is something Jesus longs to touch.
It is an ache that Jesus himself must have also felt as He journeyed in-the-the-skin through the realities of daily life.
Jesus invites us to experience this rest — by offering us an invitation.
If we dare to take the journey.
“Are you tired? Worn out?
Come to me, all you who are struggling hard and carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest.
For I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”
Jesus’s invitation, Matthew 11:28-30
Will you dare to rest? Will you dare to be real?
To whisper —
I am tired.
But, I still carry dreams. Desires. A story.
I want to be happy.
I miss the quiet.
I want to feel.
I want to let go of who I’ve been — so I can discover who I can be — when I take the time to rest.
I want to be present.
I want to love. And be loved.
Jesus invites us on a new journey.
To pause.
To draw close.
To come into an intimate special space.
The rest we all long for really can be found.
Dare to take a new journey.
Create space in your life.
Feed your soul.
So you can care for what’s tender.
Because behind your most tired moments lie the deepest parts of who God made you — longing to be known and restored.
You’re loved.
You’re cherished.
You’re worth it.
The real you.
If you dared to rest — to uncover the real you God made — what would you want more of? What would you want less of? What can feed your soul today?”
How many of us find ourselves running on empty with no time for rest, no time for ourselves, and no time for God? Bonnie Gray knows what that’s like. On the brink of fulfilling a lifelong dream, she saw her plans shatter into a journey through painful memories and anxiety. In her search for answers, she made an important discovery: we all need spiritual whitespace.
Infused with biblical encouragement and thought-provoking prompts, Finding Spiritual Whitespace shows us how to create space in the everyday for God, refreshment, and faith—right in the midst of our stress-frayed lives. And it couldn’t have come at a more perfect time in my life personally. I’ve loved reading this book {more than once}, and I know you will too!
Order a copy here.
Enter to WIN:
What is one way you could carve out time for whitespace and rest this summer? Let’s take time this summer to let our souls be breathe. Click “share your thoughts” and leave a comment under this blog post to enter. Two winners will be selected and announced next week. {if you are reading this via email, please click here to participate in the giveaway on my blog!}
Bonnie Gray is contributor at Crosswalk.com, Relevant Magazine, and DaySpring (in)courage. A UCLA graduate, Bonnie has been missionary, ministry entrepreneur and Silicon Valley high-tech professional. Bonnie blogs at FaithBarista.com in Northern California with her husband Eric and their two sons.
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I would love to find Whitespace! It is much needed. I believe I should quit my second job and between growing more intimate with Jesus that I could possibly volunteer where I can make a difference in someone’s life. This sounds like an excellent book and I can’t wait to jump right in! God Bless!
Sitting on my sun porch at 5:00 am works best for me!
I need to stay focused on His beautiful face and not the ugliness going on in the world!
I need to look at my weeks and actually pencil in white space in my afternoons. I also need to take more time in my mornings before everyone is up for the day.
Great idea to write it in on your calendar for the day and then stick to it. 🙂
I have this book, and have bought several to give away so I don’t need to win one. I wanted to share that this is an EXCELLENT book, one that I read to soothe me over and over again. Bonnie has a wonderful writing voice and I really can hear Jesus speaking his tender love over me.
If you have PTSD, depression, anxiety, or been abused in any way this book can facilitate your walk with Our Tender Savior-Jesus.
God Bless.
Thank you for sharing your heart about the book Debi. I”m reading it again now and loving it just as much as the first time!
I think I need to get up earlier to have more time in the morning to just sit and spend time with the LORD. I try to spend a least some time each morning, but I really desire to spend more.
We always go camping which is a nice time of relaxing and just slowing down a lot. Thanks for this giveaway.
2014 I was diagnosed with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, soon followed Antiphospholipid Antibody syndrome and then this June sjogren’s. All three are autoimmune diseases. Lupus is usually triggered when the body is under stress!! The other two are overlapping diseases are are often seen in Lupus patients. I’m that person this book speaks of. Not a day goes by without stress. Stress over my health, Stress over my Husbands health, the demands of my children, my home. I am that Mother, my rest comes when my body crashes from the Lupus and I can’t go anymore. I then sleep for hours because that’s all I can do, just to recover to start it all over again.
This blog post speaks to my soul. I will hang on to it and read it daily. I’ve tried several different ideas on how to achieve this, but the truth is that what I need is something I can’t achieve on my own. I have been seeking ways to have more time for prayer and to keep on top of all of my responsibility in life. I’m starting to think that I need to let God into more areas of my life.
I’m trying to figure this out some this summer. I. Am. Tired. I don’t want to just survive, driving 80 mph to the daycare to get the kids and take them to apts or swim lessons, or dinner… squeezing in my poor husband after bedtime and realizing I wouldn’t know what my own interests were if someone asked. Where do I feel connected to God, where I can be fully present and enjoy His work? Nature is a place I’ve always loved to go and rest and feel closer to God. To feel smaller, yet somehow a part of all of this that he loved so much that he sent Jesus to die for. One thing I’ve planned so far (yes, I’m saying so far! There must be more!) is a hike with my husband. The kids are still a little too small to keep up or enjoy, so instead of forcing a family affair, I think we will just go find a path in the Virginia mountains and hike. Enjoy God’s beauty. Breathe fresh air and a lack of phone service. That’s my planned whitespace.
Praying for you Paige. This season of motherhood is stretching as best, exhausting at worst. Praying for little pockets of soul-care time for you; and heart to heart time for you and your hubs. A hike sounds wonderful to me!
I think this would be a great read and gift for someone, especially moms. Sometime we just get so busy with day to day things caring for everyone and doing everything we forget that we need to rest. Even when trying to rest sometimes our minds just go back to what needs to be done next and we never fully rest.
S
I have a longing. For a deep intimate relationship with Jesus. If we don’t meet Jesus in the secret place in our heart, we can’t have that deep relationship. It seems that may todsy want to have only a superficial relationship with Jesus. My prayer is that we will open that secret place to the LORD so He can meet us there.
I have been trying to figure out how to accomplish this in hopes of getting closer to God. I’ve been thinking about fasting, meditating and praying for a couple of days next week.
This is such a perfect timing. As I sit here in tears of frustration and overwhelm wanting to get away from it all I decided to check my email and I come across this post. I have come undone too many times these past few weeks…. I need to experience that whitespace… In order to carve out time for it this summer I need to make it a priority….
A solitude retreat
Even Jesus needed time to be alone and time to rest. Why should we be any different?
Almost every woman (and man) needs to find that ‘rest’. Can’t wait to read Bonnie’s book and pass it on to every family member and friend who also needs to ‘rest’.
Thanks Renee!
Bless you and Bonnie!
I feel frozen inside myself. Having just lost my husband of 43yrs Jimmy, on April 4th, I feel I’m stuck in a mire of lost’ness…I know it sound crazy, But I’m questioning my salvation, my life, my whole existence…
I knew Jimmy wasn’t going to pull through this time, he had just been in ICU 3 weeks earlier, his body was so worn out, so weak…So, I said Lord, if it’s not your will to heal his body here on earth, Then please take him home…I said it, I meant it…But now I question, did I give in to soon, did I give up to soon? I feel so lost without my husband, my best friend, the man I literally grew up with. I thought I would be at peace with his passing, Knowing NOW he isn’t suffering anymore…But I’m not. I’m hurt, I’m angry, I’m miserable And I can’t feel comfort from the Lord…I think my heart has dried up….All I do is cry…I have 2 teens to finish raising alone, No life insurance money, his med bills & nursing home bills took all of his pension & social security. Now all of that’s been cut by more than half. I pray for peace, for comfort, understanding…But all I hear is my own crying…
Oh Donna, I am so so sorry. My heart aches for you sweet friend. Though we have never met, we are sisters in Christ and family at heart. I’m asking Jesus to give me some promise of comfort, strength and hope from His word to pray for you today. And I’ll post them here later today.
For now know this: what you are feeling is absolutely normal. You have lost the love of your life; your best friend; your soul mate. Your heart is in deep grief and it’s okay. I know it’s scary and you fear it will never end but you will be able to breathe again, and hope again, and live again. Your heart is crushed and needs time to grieve your indescribable loss. Please know I am praying for you today.
I get up early before all the family starts to stir. Even still, my soul resonates with this. Quiet, peace, space to feel. Yes, please!
Wow, this so resonates with me and how I have been feeling.