September 7, 2025 • 31 mins
Where’s the Rest? Finding Rest in the Storm – Pastor Evan Wilson
Have you ever felt like God gave you a promise but left you stranded in the storm? In this powerful message, Pastor Evan Wilson unpacks Mark 4:35–41, where Jesus calms the storm but first models a deeper truth—rest is not indifference, it’s confidence.
Through this teaching, you’ll discover how to:
- Trust God’s promises when the storm threatens your peace
- Shift from panic to faith by learning to rest in Jesus
- Recognize that rest is not laziness, but surrender and confidence in God
- Break free from workaholism and anxiety by entering God’s rhythm of grace
- Step into the “immediately” that waits on the other side of your storm
If you’ve been asking God, “Where’s the rest of the promise?” this message will help you hear His response: “Where’s your rest in the promise?”
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Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Foreign.
We're going to be in the Bookof Mark.
I want to read you a storyabout Jesus from the Book of Mark,
chapter four.
If you brought a Bible withyou, you can open it up and follow
along.
Starting in verse 35, it says,on that day when evening had come,
(00:25):
he said to them, let us goacross to the other side.
And leaving the crowd, theytook him with them in the boat just
as he was, and other boatswere with him.
And a great windstorm aroseand the waves were breaking into
the boat so that the boat wasalready filling.
But he was in the stern,asleep on a cushion.
(00:46):
And they woke him and said tohim, teacher, do you not care that
we're perishing?
And he awoke and rebuked thewind and said to the sea, peace,
be still.
And the wind ceased, and therewas a great calm.
But he said to them, why areyou so afraid?
Have you still no faith?
(01:07):
And they were filled withgreat fear and said to one another,
who then is this that even thewind and the sea obey him?
Now, many of you, you feellike you've received a direction
from Jesus.
You feel like he's given you apurpose, a mission, a message, maybe
even a destination that he'scalling you to.
(01:28):
You feel like he's called youto cross over to the other side of
something in your life, calledyou to cross over to the other side
of abuse and dysfunction thatyou were raised in, called to cross
over to the other side offinancial lack and poverty, to leave
an inheritance for your children.
But right now, you findyourself in a storm.
(01:49):
You find yourself in themiddle of something that feels like.
And it's beginning to feel like.
It might not even just be theend of the promise, but it may very
well be the end of you.
And you're looking around andyou know what God said.
You know the promise.
But the wind starts to rage.
The wind is blowing, thewater's coming over the boat, and
(02:12):
it feels like Jesus is asleepin the boat.
And you're asking God, where'sthe rest of the promise?
I know what you said, butwhere's the rest?
Look at your neighbor and say,where's the rest?
Oh, come on, look at yourother neighbor.
Say, where's the rest?
If you need a title for thissermon in your notes, that can be
(02:34):
it.
Where's the rest?
It says in verse 35, let us goacross to the other side.
Now, it's important to know inthis story that this was not just
a win on Jesus part.
Saying like, yeah, let's justGo over to the other side of this
sea.
It was actually Jesus settingthe stage for freedom and revival.
(02:58):
Because if you read a littlebit further on in the Book of Mark,
what you'll see is that whenthey get to the other side of this
storm, they arrive to a placecalled Gerasenes.
And when they arrive, Jesus isapproached by a demonized man.
And needless to say, Jesus, hedelivers this man from the demon.
But why do I tell you this?
I tell you this to say thatwhenever Jesus calls you to cross
(03:18):
over to the other side ofsomething, it's never random.
It's never without meaning.
And it's very often not justabout you, but it's actually about
the people that God called youto reach.
Fathers.
God's calling you to crossover to the other side, not just
for you, but for your sons.
(03:40):
Who said that they have tofight the same battles that you did,
who said that they have to bebound by lust and pornography in
the same way that you'd beenfor so many years?
He's calling you to cross over.
Mothers who said that yourdaughters have to battle the same
insecurity that you did.
(04:01):
Who said that they have to becrushed by comparison and bound by
shame and carry the sameweight that you did for your whole
life.
God's calling you to crossover so that they don't have to carry
that weight you carried.
See, Jesus is saying, let uscross over to the other side.
(04:23):
Don't you love that?
We serve a God who doesn'tpoint and say you, but rather grabs
us by the hand and says, letus cross over.
And that's the good news forthose of you today that feel like
you're in the middle of astorm is that you don't have to go
through it alone if you don'twant to.
But hear me, you will onlyever cross over to the other side
(04:47):
of your storm if you willplace the cross over your situation.
Come on, church, you don'thear me?
It's time to put the crossover your fear.
It's time to put the crossover your marriage.
It's time to put the crossover your finances.
Come on, somebody say, I'mabout to cross over.
(05:11):
And here's the thing as we goback to this.
This story in the Bible isthat for many of Jesus disciples,
they were fishermen.
That was their background.
And so for them, getting intothe boat probably felt about as normal
to them as us getting into thecar and going on our daily commute
feels to us there's no reasonto believe in scripture that they
(05:33):
thought that this was going tobe anything other than routine and
ordinary.
But right now I want to talkto the person who's grieving the
fact that they feel that Godhas called them to a season of stewarding
the mundane.
You feel like Jesus has givenyou a direction so unremarkable and
(05:54):
ordinary.
But you look around and yousee people doing the thing that you
want to do, that are doing thething that you even feel called to
do, that's been prophesiedover you, that you're going to do.
And you feel like right nowyou're in between destinations, you're
(06:14):
in between miracles, you're inbetween testimonies.
Anybody know what I'm talking about?
You're standing in the gapbetween what God has done and what
you believe he's gonna do.
And you start to feel the windblow and the water starts to go uneasy
(06:34):
and you're starting to wonder,God, did I even hear from you in
the first place?
And you're beginning to ask,where's the rest of the promise?
And what felt like a stall hasturned into a storm.
And what maybe began as apromise has now become panic.
(06:57):
You know, my, my wife Caitlinand I, we've been learning lately
as the parents of a two yearold boy, you got to be really careful
what you promise a two year old.
The parents are laughingbecause they know more than that.
You got to be careful what youeven say around a two year old, whether
(07:18):
that's his favorite snack,which right now is waffles.
Some of you, that's yourfavorite too, you'd have a lot in
common.
Or his favorite place to go,which right now is the beach.
We've learned what words wecan and cannot say around him for
fear of him thinking that ussaying the word is a promise that
he's going to get that thing.
(07:39):
And so if you were hanging outin the Wilson home, you might think
we're studying for a surprisespelling bee with how much we've
started spelling words in thehopes that he doesn't catch on to
what we're talking about.
But something real interestingstarted to happen.
And parents, you know alreadywhat I'm going to say is that he
has started to associate eventhe spelling of what we're saying
(08:00):
with the things so I mightsay, hey, Caitlin, you need me to
go to the store and get some waffles?
And Easton, he goes, waffles,daddy, waffles.
It's game over.
And I don't know where to gofrom here.
More seasoned Parents maybefind me after service.
And we haven't tried Morsecode yet.
I don't know.
(08:22):
But see Easton, our son, inhis immaturity, he thinks that hearing
the word waffles is the sameas getting promised that he's going
to get them in about five seconds.
Oh, come on.
And then when he doesn't getthe waffles in about five seconds,
regardless of the time or theplace, he does what two and a half
(08:45):
year olds are really good at,which is he starts to panic.
When the disciples began tofear that the storm was going to
cancel the promise that theywere going to get over to the other
side, they did what many of usdo very well, which is they began
to panic.
(09:06):
Verse 37 says, and a greatwindstorm arose and the waves were
breaking into the boat, sothat the boat was already filling.
But he was in the stern,asleep on the cushion, and they woke
him and said to him, teacher,do you not care that we are perishing?
(09:27):
Jesus, do you not care that Ireceived a word from a prophet at
a conference that I was going to.
Get married this year, butit's already September and I'm still
single?
Jesus, do you even care that Iposted every day this month on Instagram,
but I have yet to go viral andbe able to quit my day job?
(09:47):
Jesus, do you even care that Ipray for my kids every single day,
but they're still a little bit crazy?
See, sometimes it feels likeGod doesn't.
Care.
Because what may feel veryurgent to us may not actually be
an emergency on heaven's timeline.
(10:10):
You know, I'm reminded of astory in Scripture where a woman
in a state of panic tellsJesus about a man named Lazarus,
her brother.
And she says, lazarus is sickand he's dying.
And Jesus, he doesn't go tohim right away.
(10:31):
In fact, he actually delays.
But he says something.
He says, this illness will notend in death.
But for those of you that arefamiliar with the story, you know
that actually, yes, Lazarus dies.
And Jesus, he arrives late,not just by minutes or hours, but
actually days late.
(10:52):
And he arrives to a grieving family.
And what might have felt likeindifference or lack of urgency or
even apathy from Jesus wasactually him setting the stage for
a miracle.
Because notice, hear me, church.
Notice that he did not say that.
Lazarus would not die.
He said that it would not endin death.
(11:12):
Oh, come on, somebody hear meright now.
Some of you have been losingfaith because God actually let your
dreams die.
Some of you have been losingfaith because he actually let your
marriage end.
And he actually let your kidsgo wayward.
But I came on mission fromheaven today to tell somebody it
will not end in death.
(11:33):
Whether it's Lazarus in a tombor a boat sinking in a storm, Jesus.
Is always on time.
And he's never too far toresurrect the dead or to rescue the
drowning.
Because just like Lazarus,death set the stage for a resurrection.
This storm, the storm you're in.
(11:55):
Setting the stage for aRevelation, verse 39, it says, and
he awoke and rebuked the windand said to the sea, peace, be still.
And the wind ceased, and therewas a great calm.
And he said to them, why areyou so afraid?
(12:18):
Have you still no faith?
And they were filled withgreat fear and said to one another,
who then is this that even thewind and the sea obey him?
Now, this is a side note, butI felt led to say this, and I'll
be a little sassy about it.
One thing I love about Jesusis that, and this is something I
(12:39):
think a lot of Christianscould stand to learn from him.
He protects before he corrects.
Some of y' all didn't hear meat the other campuses.
Jesus protects before he corrects.
Notice how when he and thedisciples are in the storm, he rebukes
the wind and the sea before herebukes them.
(13:01):
Notice how when the Phariseesare picking up stones to condemn
the woman caught in adultery,he protects her before he tells her
to go and sin no more.
And I think a lot ofChristians make a habit of rebuking
somebody who's alreadydrowning and convicting somebody
that's already being condemned.
But could we be like Jesus whosays, I'm gonna protect before I
(13:25):
correct?
But anyways, Jesus said, whyare you so afraid?
Have you still no faith?
And they went and they werefilled with a great fear and said
to one another, who then isthis that even the wind and the sea
obey him?
(13:46):
Now, how is it that in oneverse, Jesus is saying, why are you
so afraid?
Is it because you don't have faith?
But then in the verse rightafter that, it says they were then
filled.
With a great fear because ofwhat they saw transpire.
So.
So how can you be so afraid.
That you lack faith, but then one.
Verse later, be filled withfear after what you see?
(14:06):
I'm gonna tell you, the shiftthat actually happened is they went
from fearing the storm tofearing the one with the power to
calm it.
And so some of you, you fearedthe balance in your bank account
more than your provider.
You feared divorce more thanyour Reconciler, you feared death
more than the one.
Who took its power.
And sometimes fear it'll causeyou to second guess if you ever heard
(14:31):
from God in the first place.
And fear says, I know thepromise, but I'm starting to wonder
and worry if he's going toactually come through.
And so you're asking God,where's the rest?
Where's the rest of my healing?
Where's the rest of my deliverance?
Where's the rest of my provision?
God, where's the rest of the promise?
(14:53):
But what if while you'reasking God, where's the rest of the
promise, he's asking you,where's your rest in the promise?
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Where's your rest in the promise?
Verse 38 says, But he was inthe stern, asleep on the cushion.
See, while the disciples werewere panicking, Jesus was sleeping.
And not because he didn't care about.
Their safety, but it's becausehe knew that it was never actually
(16:35):
in jeopardy in the first place.
And so the disciples, they hada choice to make.
Were they going to interpretJesus rest as indifference or confidence?
But when the wind and the raincame, so did their panic.
(16:57):
But my question for you today,for those of you that feel like you're
in the middle of somethingthat might take you out, is are you
taking your cues from yourcircumstance or from your Savior?
So we get ready to step intothe next thing God wants to do.
(17:18):
We're talking about findingrest in the Promise.
We're starting this seriesfrom Rest to revival.
But I would be remiss if wedidn't take a little bit of time
to talk about what rest is andwhat rest does.
Because I would venture aguess to say that there's many of
you in this room, many of youonline and across our other campuses,
that you've never actuallyexperienced true biblical rest before.
(17:41):
You've taken vacations, you'vehad long weekends, you've taken a
nap, and you've escaped your hustle.
But you've never truly tastedof the rest that Jesus has to offer.
Because some of you, it shows in.
Your life and you feel itevery single day as the weeks roll
over.
The weekends aren't long enough.
The vacation doesn't satisfy.
We're talking about rest, andI want to give you an acronym, a
(18:05):
note Takers Dream right now.
Because I think it might helpyou remember when the world and hustle
culture and all these thingstry to make you forget.
These are four things thatrest does.
We're gonna spell out R E S Tnumber one.
Rest reminds Rest reminds.
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It reminds us that God's onthe throne and that one day trusting
fully in him, in our rest, isbetter than seven, trusting fully
in the strength of our striving.
But see, a lot of us, we havethis perspective that rest actually
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comes to rob us.
I'm going to talk to theworkaholics right now, as a recovering
workaholic myself.
A lot of time we think thatrest comes to rob us of our momentum,
of our success, of ourfinances, of getting ahead.
It robs us of our significance.
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Anybody ever felt guilty fortaking a day off, thinking you're
going to get behind?
That's not God's plan for your existence.
Because rest reminds you.
It reminds you that as abeliever, you have the right to say,
there's more where that came from.
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You have the right to say,God, you can do more in my rest than
I can do in my overtime.
Amen.
Psalm 127, verse 2.
It says, it is in vain thatyou rise up early and go late to
rest, eating the bread ofanxious toil that sound like your
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life, for he gives to hisbeloved sleep.
I want to ask you, when wasthe last time you truly rested, knowing
that God is ordering your steps?
He's making a way, he's goingbefore you.
Second letter letter E. Restexposes some of you.
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You've never actually sloweddown ever long enough to see what
your heart naturallygravitates towards when life gets
quiet enough where you canactually hear innermost thoughts
in the busyness of life.
You know, there's a term inpsychology called productive avoidance.
(20:41):
Have you ever had a reallylong, important to do list?
Something that you're reallystressed out about doing?
You know you have to do it,but it's been looming over your head.
And thinking about it juststresses you out.
But you know, you got to getit done.
So you go to do it, and thenthis thought enters your mind that
says, you know, what youhaven't done in a long time?
(21:04):
Scrubbed all the baseboards inyour house.
And I think that's what youneed to do right now.
Push all that other stuff aside.
And so, so often we'llactually delay what's most important.
We'll delay what matters mostfor the thing that is good but not
(21:25):
urgent.
And we get this feeling ofbeing productive and successful,
but in reality, we've just putoff what God wants us to step into.
And that's why rest exposes.
It exposes what matters most.
And some of you, you've beenstruggling to even discern the will
of God for your life becauseyou've been operating in a productive
(21:47):
avoidance, staying so busythat you actually miss your blessing.
And we see this in the storyof two sisters named Martha and Mary.
And you could say that one wasso concerned with being busy while
the other was concerned withresting at the feet of Jesus.
Luke 10:41, 42.
It says, but the Lord answeredher, martha, Martha.
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You are anxious and troubledabout many things.
Who can relate to Martha?
But one thing is necessary,and Mary has chosen the good portion,
which will not be taken awayfrom her.
See, rest exposes if you'reliving like Martha, busy but burdened,
or like Mary, resting in whatmatters most.
(22:36):
The third letter, letter S, R,E, S, talking about four things that
rest does.
Rest surrenders.
Matthew 11, 28, 29.
It says, Come to me all wholabor and are heavy laden, and I
will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you andlearn from me, for I am gentle and
(23:01):
lowly in heart, and you willfind rest for your souls.
You know, I think sometimesbecause we have this idea of rest
being sleeping on a beach,doing nothing, that we actually think
that rest is passive.
But when we read this verse,we see phrases like, come to me,
take my yoke, learn from me.
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See, rest isn't about doing nothing.
It's about doing the thingthat matters most, and that's surrendering
to Jesus.
And so there are actuallythings that you have to do to step
into true rest.
Some of you, you might thinkthat rest comes from inaction, but
it comes from the action of surrendering.
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You gotta surrender.
You know, the kids now havethis phrase called bedrotting.
Now, you're just bedrotting today.
And it's kind of exactly whatit sounds like.
It's when you are laying inbed all day and really doing nothing,
essentially, other than maybescrolling on your phone on social
(24:04):
media.
And we wonder why Gen Z issuch a suicidal generation.
I would.
I would maybe guess that it'sbecause we have a generation that's
trying to find rest in analgorithm instead of God's rhythm.
And I don't know about you,but I don't want my source to be
(24:24):
an algorithm.
I want to step in and tap intoGod's rhythm.
Come on, somebody say I'mcrossing over to God's rhythm.
(25:24):
The passage that we just read,I want to read again in the message.
Translation says, are youtired, worn out, burned out on religion?
Come to me, get away with me,and you'll recover your life.
I'll show you how to take Areal rest.
(25:44):
Walk with me and work with me.
Watch how I do it.
Learn the unforced rhythms of grace.
I won't lay anything heavy orill fitting on you.
Keep company with me andyou'll learn how to live freely and
lightly.
Come on.
Somebody who wants some ofthat in their life today.
(26:06):
Come on.
As we get ready to close Rest,we're talking about the four things
rest, does and worship.
Team, y' all can come help me out.
Rest.
Rest.
Trusts.
(26:26):
Rest.
Trusts.
Now, some of you, and I wantto speak prophetically now, some
of you, you have neveractually stepped fully into rest.
Or maybe it's been a long timesince you've been able to rest.
Because the last time that youdid, the people that were supposed
to take care of you didn't.
The people that were supposedto provide for you and cover for
you came up short.
(26:46):
The person that was supposedto guard your heart threw it away.
And so for you, your inability to.
Step into rest, it's not about rebellion.
It's been about survival.
The bills are coming.
The abuse is knocking at the door.
And you've had to learn how tokeep watch and not rest and not sleep.
(27:08):
Because you're so worried thatif you take a step back and you actually
rest and you're still thatthen everything's gonna fall apart,
maybe like it did last time.
But can I tell you, Church,God wants to take you from survival
to revival.
(27:28):
And the bridge that he wantsto use to get you there is called
rest.
Because rest produces trust.
Trust that while you rest,even while other people may let you
down, the mighty hand of God'sfavor and provision will remain on
you.
Proverbs 3.
(27:49):
24.
It says, if you lie down, youwill not be afraid.
When you lie down, your sleepwill be sweet.
For the Lord will be your confidence.
Come on, Church.
When you find yourself in themiddle of your storm, like many of
you are right now, and you seeJesus asleep in the boat, don't be
(28:10):
like his disciples and mistakehis confidence for indifference.
But let his confidence becomeyour confidence and learn to rest
in the rain.
Come on.
Somebody say, I'm going torest in the rain.
And here's why this is so important.
We're gonna bring this home.
(28:31):
Because Jesus may have slepton a cushion, but then he stepped
into a commission.
Because on the other side, weread in Mark, chapter five, that
when Jesus had stepped out ofthe boat, immediately.
Come on.
Somebody say, immediately,there met him out of the tombs, a
man with an unclean spirit.
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Spirit.
Now you can go and you canread the rest of that this week.
But needless to say, Jesus, he delivers.
The man from the uncleanspirit and he goes on to continue
his ministry in the region.
But I wonder, church, whatimmediately is on the other side
of you crossing over to theother side of this storm?
What kind of revival,breakthrough and revelation is on
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the other side of you saying,jesus, I'm going to learn how to
rest in the rain?
What unsaved family membersare going to see the peace in your
life and wonder where you got it?
What kind of intimacy can bebirthed in your marriage when you
both learn to slow down enoughto actually minister to each other
and be still?
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Come on.
What kind of revival does Godwant to bring forth through your
life in your schools and youruniversities, when you stop pursuing
a relationship out of seasonand you start learning to rest in
your singleness?
Come on, somebody.
God.
God's getting ready to crossyou over today.
And so I believe there's aspecial outpouring of peace, supernatural
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peace and rest right now.
And so if you want it, I wantyou to jump up on your feet right
now across all of our campuses.
Come on.
This is countercultural.
The world doesn't talk like this.
The world says, oh, you'regonna get behind.
But like a slingshot, God isgonna actually pull you back in this
season to launch you forward.
Come on, somebody.
(30:18):
We're gonna press in right now.
If you.
If you've been wondering, God,where's the rest of the promise?
But you want to learn to restin the promise.
Come on.
Declare this with me.
Lord Jesus, I thank you rightnow for a deposit of supernatural
peace and provision.
God, that we would not takeour cues from our circumstance, but
we would look at our Savior.
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Father, we trust you.
We trust your timeline.
We trust your provision.
We're going to rest in thepromise, God.
We're not going to wonderwhere you are because we know that
you're in the boat with us,Father, and we receive it right now
in Jesus name.
Come on.
Can somebody shout amen andgive God a hand clap and a shout
of praise right now?
(31:03):
Come on, somebody.
Foreign.
We're going to be in the Bookof Mark.
I want to read you a storyabout Jesus from the Book of Mark,
chapter four.
If you brought a Bible withyou, you can open it up and follow
along.
Starting in verse 35, it says,on that day when evening had come,
(00:25):
he said to them, let us goacross to the other side.
And leaving the crowd, theytook him with them in the boat just
as he was, and other boatswere with him.
And a great windstorm aroseand the waves were breaking into
the boat so that the boat wasalready filling.
But he was in the stern,asleep on a cushion.
(00:46):
And they woke him and said tohim, teacher, do you not care that
we're perishing?
And he awoke and rebuked thewind and said to the sea, peace,
be still.
And the wind ceased, and therewas a great calm.
But he said to them, why areyou so afraid?
Have you still no faith?
(01:07):
And they were filled withgreat fear and said to one another,
who then is this that even thewind and the sea obey him?
Now, many of you, you feellike you've received a direction
from Jesus.
You feel like he's given you apurpose, a mission, a message, maybe
even a destination that he'scalling you to.
(01:28):
You feel like he's called youto cross over to the other side of
something in your life, calledyou to cross over to the other side
of abuse and dysfunction thatyou were raised in, called to cross
over to the other side offinancial lack and poverty, to leave
an inheritance for your children.
But right now, you findyourself in a storm.
(01:49):
You find yourself in themiddle of something that feels like.
And it's beginning to feel like.
It might not even just be theend of the promise, but it may very
well be the end of you.
And you're looking around andyou know what God said.
You know the promise.
But the wind starts to rage.
The wind is blowing, thewater's coming over the boat, and
(02:12):
it feels like Jesus is asleepin the boat.
And you're asking God, where'sthe rest of the promise?
I know what you said, butwhere's the rest?
Look at your neighbor and say,where's the rest?
Oh, come on, look at yourother neighbor.
Say, where's the rest?
If you need a title for thissermon in your notes, that can be
(02:34):
it.
Where's the rest?
It says in verse 35, let us goacross to the other side.
Now, it's important to know inthis story that this was not just
a win on Jesus part.
Saying like, yeah, let's justGo over to the other side of this
sea.
It was actually Jesus settingthe stage for freedom and revival.
(02:58):
Because if you read a littlebit further on in the Book of Mark,
what you'll see is that whenthey get to the other side of this
storm, they arrive to a placecalled Gerasenes.
And when they arrive, Jesus isapproached by a demonized man.
And needless to say, Jesus, hedelivers this man from the demon.
But why do I tell you this?
I tell you this to say thatwhenever Jesus calls you to cross
(03:18):
over to the other side ofsomething, it's never random.
It's never without meaning.
And it's very often not justabout you, but it's actually about
the people that God called youto reach.
Fathers.
God's calling you to crossover to the other side, not just
for you, but for your sons.
(03:40):
Who said that they have tofight the same battles that you did,
who said that they have to bebound by lust and pornography in
the same way that you'd beenfor so many years?
He's calling you to cross over.
Mothers who said that yourdaughters have to battle the same
insecurity that you did.
(04:01):
Who said that they have to becrushed by comparison and bound by
shame and carry the sameweight that you did for your whole
life.
God's calling you to crossover so that they don't have to carry
that weight you carried.
See, Jesus is saying, let uscross over to the other side.
(04:23):
Don't you love that?
We serve a God who doesn'tpoint and say you, but rather grabs
us by the hand and says, letus cross over.
And that's the good news forthose of you today that feel like
you're in the middle of astorm is that you don't have to go
through it alone if you don'twant to.
But hear me, you will onlyever cross over to the other side
(04:47):
of your storm if you willplace the cross over your situation.
Come on, church, you don'thear me?
It's time to put the crossover your fear.
It's time to put the crossover your marriage.
It's time to put the crossover your finances.
Come on, somebody say, I'mabout to cross over.
(05:11):
And here's the thing as we goback to this.
This story in the Bible isthat for many of Jesus disciples,
they were fishermen.
That was their background.
And so for them, getting intothe boat probably felt about as normal
to them as us getting into thecar and going on our daily commute
feels to us there's no reasonto believe in scripture that they
(05:33):
thought that this was going tobe anything other than routine and
ordinary.
But right now I want to talkto the person who's grieving the
fact that they feel that Godhas called them to a season of stewarding
the mundane.
You feel like Jesus has givenyou a direction so unremarkable and
(05:54):
ordinary.
But you look around and yousee people doing the thing that you
want to do, that are doing thething that you even feel called to
do, that's been prophesiedover you, that you're going to do.
And you feel like right nowyou're in between destinations, you're
(06:14):
in between miracles, you're inbetween testimonies.
Anybody know what I'm talking about?
You're standing in the gapbetween what God has done and what
you believe he's gonna do.
And you start to feel the windblow and the water starts to go uneasy
(06:34):
and you're starting to wonder,God, did I even hear from you in
the first place?
And you're beginning to ask,where's the rest of the promise?
And what felt like a stall hasturned into a storm.
And what maybe began as apromise has now become panic.
(06:57):
You know, my, my wife Caitlinand I, we've been learning lately
as the parents of a two yearold boy, you got to be really careful
what you promise a two year old.
The parents are laughingbecause they know more than that.
You got to be careful what youeven say around a two year old, whether
(07:18):
that's his favorite snack,which right now is waffles.
Some of you, that's yourfavorite too, you'd have a lot in
common.
Or his favorite place to go,which right now is the beach.
We've learned what words wecan and cannot say around him for
fear of him thinking that ussaying the word is a promise that
he's going to get that thing.
(07:39):
And so if you were hanging outin the Wilson home, you might think
we're studying for a surprisespelling bee with how much we've
started spelling words in thehopes that he doesn't catch on to
what we're talking about.
But something real interestingstarted to happen.
And parents, you know alreadywhat I'm going to say is that he
has started to associate eventhe spelling of what we're saying
(08:00):
with the things so I mightsay, hey, Caitlin, you need me to
go to the store and get some waffles?
And Easton, he goes, waffles,daddy, waffles.
It's game over.
And I don't know where to gofrom here.
More seasoned Parents maybefind me after service.
And we haven't tried Morsecode yet.
I don't know.
(08:22):
But see Easton, our son, inhis immaturity, he thinks that hearing
the word waffles is the sameas getting promised that he's going
to get them in about five seconds.
Oh, come on.
And then when he doesn't getthe waffles in about five seconds,
regardless of the time or theplace, he does what two and a half
(08:45):
year olds are really good at,which is he starts to panic.
When the disciples began tofear that the storm was going to
cancel the promise that theywere going to get over to the other
side, they did what many of usdo very well, which is they began
to panic.
(09:06):
Verse 37 says, and a greatwindstorm arose and the waves were
breaking into the boat, sothat the boat was already filling.
But he was in the stern,asleep on the cushion, and they woke
him and said to him, teacher,do you not care that we are perishing?
(09:27):
Jesus, do you not care that Ireceived a word from a prophet at
a conference that I was going to.
Get married this year, butit's already September and I'm still
single?
Jesus, do you even care that Iposted every day this month on Instagram,
but I have yet to go viral andbe able to quit my day job?
(09:47):
Jesus, do you even care that Ipray for my kids every single day,
but they're still a little bit crazy?
See, sometimes it feels likeGod doesn't.
Care.
Because what may feel veryurgent to us may not actually be
an emergency on heaven's timeline.
(10:10):
You know, I'm reminded of astory in Scripture where a woman
in a state of panic tellsJesus about a man named Lazarus,
her brother.
And she says, lazarus is sickand he's dying.
And Jesus, he doesn't go tohim right away.
(10:31):
In fact, he actually delays.
But he says something.
He says, this illness will notend in death.
But for those of you that arefamiliar with the story, you know
that actually, yes, Lazarus dies.
And Jesus, he arrives late,not just by minutes or hours, but
actually days late.
(10:52):
And he arrives to a grieving family.
And what might have felt likeindifference or lack of urgency or
even apathy from Jesus wasactually him setting the stage for
a miracle.
Because notice, hear me, church.
Notice that he did not say that.
Lazarus would not die.
He said that it would not endin death.
(11:12):
Oh, come on, somebody hear meright now.
Some of you have been losingfaith because God actually let your
dreams die.
Some of you have been losingfaith because he actually let your
marriage end.
And he actually let your kidsgo wayward.
But I came on mission fromheaven today to tell somebody it
will not end in death.
(11:33):
Whether it's Lazarus in a tombor a boat sinking in a storm, Jesus.
Is always on time.
And he's never too far toresurrect the dead or to rescue the
drowning.
Because just like Lazarus,death set the stage for a resurrection.
This storm, the storm you're in.
(11:55):
Setting the stage for aRevelation, verse 39, it says, and
he awoke and rebuked the windand said to the sea, peace, be still.
And the wind ceased, and therewas a great calm.
And he said to them, why areyou so afraid?
(12:18):
Have you still no faith?
And they were filled withgreat fear and said to one another,
who then is this that even thewind and the sea obey him?
Now, this is a side note, butI felt led to say this, and I'll
be a little sassy about it.
One thing I love about Jesusis that, and this is something I
(12:39):
think a lot of Christianscould stand to learn from him.
He protects before he corrects.
Some of y' all didn't hear meat the other campuses.
Jesus protects before he corrects.
Notice how when he and thedisciples are in the storm, he rebukes
the wind and the sea before herebukes them.
(13:01):
Notice how when the Phariseesare picking up stones to condemn
the woman caught in adultery,he protects her before he tells her
to go and sin no more.
And I think a lot ofChristians make a habit of rebuking
somebody who's alreadydrowning and convicting somebody
that's already being condemned.
But could we be like Jesus whosays, I'm gonna protect before I
(13:25):
correct?
But anyways, Jesus said, whyare you so afraid?
Have you still no faith?
And they went and they werefilled with a great fear and said
to one another, who then isthis that even the wind and the sea
obey him?
(13:46):
Now, how is it that in oneverse, Jesus is saying, why are you
so afraid?
Is it because you don't have faith?
But then in the verse rightafter that, it says they were then
filled.
With a great fear because ofwhat they saw transpire.
So.
So how can you be so afraid.
That you lack faith, but then one.
Verse later, be filled withfear after what you see?
(14:06):
I'm gonna tell you, the shiftthat actually happened is they went
from fearing the storm tofearing the one with the power to
calm it.
And so some of you, you fearedthe balance in your bank account
more than your provider.
You feared divorce more thanyour Reconciler, you feared death
more than the one.
Who took its power.
And sometimes fear it'll causeyou to second guess if you ever heard
(14:31):
from God in the first place.
And fear says, I know thepromise, but I'm starting to wonder
and worry if he's going toactually come through.
And so you're asking God,where's the rest?
Where's the rest of my healing?
Where's the rest of my deliverance?
Where's the rest of my provision?
God, where's the rest of the promise?
(14:53):
But what if while you'reasking God, where's the rest of the
promise, he's asking you,where's your rest in the promise?
(16:14):
Where's your rest in the promise?
Verse 38 says, But he was inthe stern, asleep on the cushion.
See, while the disciples werewere panicking, Jesus was sleeping.
And not because he didn't care about.
Their safety, but it's becausehe knew that it was never actually
(16:35):
in jeopardy in the first place.
And so the disciples, they hada choice to make.
Were they going to interpretJesus rest as indifference or confidence?
But when the wind and the raincame, so did their panic.
(16:57):
But my question for you today,for those of you that feel like you're
in the middle of somethingthat might take you out, is are you
taking your cues from yourcircumstance or from your Savior?
So we get ready to step intothe next thing God wants to do.
(17:18):
We're talking about findingrest in the Promise.
We're starting this seriesfrom Rest to revival.
But I would be remiss if wedidn't take a little bit of time
to talk about what rest is andwhat rest does.
Because I would venture aguess to say that there's many of
you in this room, many of youonline and across our other campuses,
that you've never actuallyexperienced true biblical rest before.
(17:41):
You've taken vacations, you'vehad long weekends, you've taken a
nap, and you've escaped your hustle.
But you've never truly tastedof the rest that Jesus has to offer.
Because some of you, it shows in.
Your life and you feel itevery single day as the weeks roll
over.
The weekends aren't long enough.
The vacation doesn't satisfy.
We're talking about rest, andI want to give you an acronym, a
(18:05):
note Takers Dream right now.
Because I think it might helpyou remember when the world and hustle
culture and all these thingstry to make you forget.
These are four things thatrest does.
We're gonna spell out R E S Tnumber one.
Rest reminds Rest reminds.
(18:28):
It reminds us that God's onthe throne and that one day trusting
fully in him, in our rest, isbetter than seven, trusting fully
in the strength of our striving.
But see, a lot of us, we havethis perspective that rest actually
(18:48):
comes to rob us.
I'm going to talk to theworkaholics right now, as a recovering
workaholic myself.
A lot of time we think thatrest comes to rob us of our momentum,
of our success, of ourfinances, of getting ahead.
It robs us of our significance.
(19:10):
Anybody ever felt guilty fortaking a day off, thinking you're
going to get behind?
That's not God's plan for your existence.
Because rest reminds you.
It reminds you that as abeliever, you have the right to say,
there's more where that came from.
(19:31):
You have the right to say,God, you can do more in my rest than
I can do in my overtime.
Amen.
Psalm 127, verse 2.
It says, it is in vain thatyou rise up early and go late to
rest, eating the bread ofanxious toil that sound like your
(19:52):
life, for he gives to hisbeloved sleep.
I want to ask you, when wasthe last time you truly rested, knowing
that God is ordering your steps?
He's making a way, he's goingbefore you.
Second letter letter E. Restexposes some of you.
(20:20):
You've never actually sloweddown ever long enough to see what
your heart naturallygravitates towards when life gets
quiet enough where you canactually hear innermost thoughts
in the busyness of life.
You know, there's a term inpsychology called productive avoidance.
(20:41):
Have you ever had a reallylong, important to do list?
Something that you're reallystressed out about doing?
You know you have to do it,but it's been looming over your head.
And thinking about it juststresses you out.
But you know, you got to getit done.
So you go to do it, and thenthis thought enters your mind that
says, you know, what youhaven't done in a long time?
(21:04):
Scrubbed all the baseboards inyour house.
And I think that's what youneed to do right now.
Push all that other stuff aside.
And so, so often we'llactually delay what's most important.
We'll delay what matters mostfor the thing that is good but not
(21:25):
urgent.
And we get this feeling ofbeing productive and successful,
but in reality, we've just putoff what God wants us to step into.
And that's why rest exposes.
It exposes what matters most.
And some of you, you've beenstruggling to even discern the will
of God for your life becauseyou've been operating in a productive
(21:47):
avoidance, staying so busythat you actually miss your blessing.
And we see this in the storyof two sisters named Martha and Mary.
And you could say that one wasso concerned with being busy while
the other was concerned withresting at the feet of Jesus.
Luke 10:41, 42.
It says, but the Lord answeredher, martha, Martha.
(22:11):
You are anxious and troubledabout many things.
Who can relate to Martha?
But one thing is necessary,and Mary has chosen the good portion,
which will not be taken awayfrom her.
See, rest exposes if you'reliving like Martha, busy but burdened,
or like Mary, resting in whatmatters most.
(22:36):
The third letter, letter S, R,E, S, talking about four things that
rest does.
Rest surrenders.
Matthew 11, 28, 29.
It says, Come to me all wholabor and are heavy laden, and I
will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you andlearn from me, for I am gentle and
(23:01):
lowly in heart, and you willfind rest for your souls.
You know, I think sometimesbecause we have this idea of rest
being sleeping on a beach,doing nothing, that we actually think
that rest is passive.
But when we read this verse,we see phrases like, come to me,
take my yoke, learn from me.
(23:22):
See, rest isn't about doing nothing.
It's about doing the thingthat matters most, and that's surrendering
to Jesus.
And so there are actuallythings that you have to do to step
into true rest.
Some of you, you might thinkthat rest comes from inaction, but
it comes from the action of surrendering.
(23:43):
You gotta surrender.
You know, the kids now havethis phrase called bedrotting.
Now, you're just bedrotting today.
And it's kind of exactly whatit sounds like.
It's when you are laying inbed all day and really doing nothing,
essentially, other than maybescrolling on your phone on social
(24:04):
media.
And we wonder why Gen Z issuch a suicidal generation.
I would.
I would maybe guess that it'sbecause we have a generation that's
trying to find rest in analgorithm instead of God's rhythm.
And I don't know about you,but I don't want my source to be
(24:24):
an algorithm.
I want to step in and tap intoGod's rhythm.
Come on, somebody say I'mcrossing over to God's rhythm.
(25:24):
The passage that we just read,I want to read again in the message.
Translation says, are youtired, worn out, burned out on religion?
Come to me, get away with me,and you'll recover your life.
I'll show you how to take Areal rest.
(25:44):
Walk with me and work with me.
Watch how I do it.
Learn the unforced rhythms of grace.
I won't lay anything heavy orill fitting on you.
Keep company with me andyou'll learn how to live freely and
lightly.
Come on.
Somebody who wants some ofthat in their life today.
(26:06):
Come on.
As we get ready to close Rest,we're talking about the four things
rest, does and worship.
Team, y' all can come help me out.
Rest.
Rest.
Trusts.
(26:26):
Rest.
Trusts.
Now, some of you, and I wantto speak prophetically now, some
of you, you have neveractually stepped fully into rest.
Or maybe it's been a long timesince you've been able to rest.
Because the last time that youdid, the people that were supposed
to take care of you didn't.
The people that were supposedto provide for you and cover for
you came up short.
(26:46):
The person that was supposedto guard your heart threw it away.
And so for you, your inability to.
Step into rest, it's not about rebellion.
It's been about survival.
The bills are coming.
The abuse is knocking at the door.
And you've had to learn how tokeep watch and not rest and not sleep.
(27:08):
Because you're so worried thatif you take a step back and you actually
rest and you're still thatthen everything's gonna fall apart,
maybe like it did last time.
But can I tell you, Church,God wants to take you from survival
to revival.
(27:28):
And the bridge that he wantsto use to get you there is called
rest.
Because rest produces trust.
Trust that while you rest,even while other people may let you
down, the mighty hand of God'sfavor and provision will remain on
you.
Proverbs 3.
(27:49):
24.
It says, if you lie down, youwill not be afraid.
When you lie down, your sleepwill be sweet.
For the Lord will be your confidence.
Come on, Church.
When you find yourself in themiddle of your storm, like many of
you are right now, and you seeJesus asleep in the boat, don't be
(28:10):
like his disciples and mistakehis confidence for indifference.
But let his confidence becomeyour confidence and learn to rest
in the rain.
Come on.
Somebody say, I'm going torest in the rain.
And here's why this is so important.
We're gonna bring this home.
(28:31):
Because Jesus may have slepton a cushion, but then he stepped
into a commission.
Because on the other side, weread in Mark, chapter five, that
when Jesus had stepped out ofthe boat, immediately.
Come on.
Somebody say, immediately,there met him out of the tombs, a
man with an unclean spirit.
(28:52):
Spirit.
Now you can go and you canread the rest of that this week.
But needless to say, Jesus, he delivers.
The man from the uncleanspirit and he goes on to continue
his ministry in the region.
But I wonder, church, whatimmediately is on the other side
of you crossing over to theother side of this storm?
What kind of revival,breakthrough and revelation is on
(29:14):
the other side of you saying,jesus, I'm going to learn how to
rest in the rain?
What unsaved family membersare going to see the peace in your
life and wonder where you got it?
What kind of intimacy can bebirthed in your marriage when you
both learn to slow down enoughto actually minister to each other
and be still?
(29:34):
Come on.
What kind of revival does Godwant to bring forth through your
life in your schools and youruniversities, when you stop pursuing
a relationship out of seasonand you start learning to rest in
your singleness?
Come on, somebody.
God.
God's getting ready to crossyou over today.
And so I believe there's aspecial outpouring of peace, supernatural
(29:57):
peace and rest right now.
And so if you want it, I wantyou to jump up on your feet right
now across all of our campuses.
Come on.
This is countercultural.
The world doesn't talk like this.
The world says, oh, you'regonna get behind.
But like a slingshot, God isgonna actually pull you back in this
season to launch you forward.
Come on, somebody.
(30:18):
We're gonna press in right now.
If you.
If you've been wondering, God,where's the rest of the promise?
But you want to learn to restin the promise.
Come on.
Declare this with me.
Lord Jesus, I thank you rightnow for a deposit of supernatural
peace and provision.
God, that we would not takeour cues from our circumstance, but
we would look at our Savior.
(30:39):
Father, we trust you.
We trust your timeline.
We trust your provision.
We're going to rest in thepromise, God.
We're not going to wonderwhere you are because we know that
you're in the boat with us,Father, and we receive it right now
in Jesus name.
Come on.
Can somebody shout amen andgive God a hand clap and a shout
of praise right now?
(31:03):
Come on, somebody.
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