United Church of Christ Mental Health Network

Working to reduce stigma & promote the inclusion of people with mental health challenges and neurodiversity.

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
DONATE
  • About
    • Who We Are
    • Board Members
    • Our Partners
    • Request Our Logo
    • Join Our Board
  • WISE Certification
    • What is Becoming WISE?
    • How to Begin the WISE Process
    • WISE Congregations / Synagogues / Organizations
    • Contact WISE
    • Stories
  • Resources
    • Congregation / Synagogue / Organization Toolkits
    • What is Mental Health?
    • What is Neurodiversity?
    • Mental Health Resource Links
    • Suicide Prevention Awareness
    • Resources to Host Your Mental Health Sunday Year-round
    • The Genesis Project
    • Affinity Group
  • Open & Affirming
    • Announcement of Our ONA Designation
    • Our ONA Covenant
    • Video: Why We Became ONA
    • Support for Ban on Conversion Therapy
  • News
    • Sign Up for MHN News
    • MHN at UCC General Synod
    • Response to the Overturning of Roe v. Wade
    • UCC Mental Health Network Offers New Resources to Address Youth and Trauma
    • UCC Mental Health Network Designated Open and Affirming Ministry
    • Caring for Our Communities Amid Tragedy
    • Condemning Violence Against AAPI Community
  • The Journey Continues Blog
  • Trauma & Youth Resources
  • Contact the MHN

Rest and Wellness for All by Nancy Rosas

July 11, 2022 By Rev. Nancy Rosas

Photo by Nancy Rosas -Gospel of Mark 6:31

Do you ever wonder what was God up to when after six days of creating the world they took a whole day for rest, declared it holy, and then proceeded to make it a commandment for us? What’s so holy about doing nothing, or anything that doesn’t begin with I have to, I should, I must, but begins with I want to because it brings me delight and rest?

Writer Joshua Gorenflo says that the ideas we inherited about Sabbath are often associated with religious practices and practices like rest and doing nothing, don’t sit well with our dominant culture of productivity, overscheduling time and commitments, and finding it hard saying no. It doesn’t help either that we live in a culture that sets a person’s worth and value based on their capacity to do and produce, non-stop. Being busy all the time has become a pride medal to prove we are successful and popular.

We know we need rest. We might even know the many ways that rest boots our immune system, our mental wellbeing, and our resilience, and still, most of us find it hard to stop working and thinking. But there are also realities that need to be named that keep many from being able to rest. Systemic injustice keeps many from experiencing rest due to the lack of access for their physical and mental wellbeing or not having a just income with benefits, and this leaves them with no choice but to work non-stop to meet their basic needs.

We are also living in a time when in our world we are facing great challenges and uncertainty and a lot around us keeps changing. Practices such as rest can not only support our physical and mental wellbeing but also create time and space for rituals and practices that can keep us grounded while we move through the rage, fear, hopelessness, and all of our feelings, and nourish our sense of hope and joy.

Rest and wellness is a holy practice that encourages our and creation’s sustainability and life rhythms. Rest looks different for everyone, it can be as simple as consciously creating a sustainable rhythm for your days. Rest can look like taking time to breathe, acknowledging and honoring your feelings, or going for a walk and listening to the birds or the wind, or honoring our need and longing for silence and solitude and choosing when and how we want to spend time with others. Rest can be listening to your favorite music, dancing, cooking and eating with delight your favorite food, taking a nap, reading and writing for pleasure, or finding delight in tending to the land where you dwell.

God created us all for harmony of mind, body, and soul, for delight and flourishing. Rest is your divine right!

Rev. Nancy Rosas

Rev. Nancy Rosas (she/her/hers) is the Pastor of Pilgrim-St. Luke’s United Church of Christ, a WISE (Welcoming, Inclusive, Supportive and Engaged) for mental health spiritual community in Buffalo, NY.  She encourages and nurtures her sense of joy and resilience through the practices of yoga and meditation, photography, gardening, writing, and being outdoors on a regular basis.

Filed Under: Healthy Living, Mental Health, Mental Health Network, self care, UCC, United Church of Christ

Quick Navigation

  • Congregations, Synagogues, and Organizations Toolkit
  • Donate
  • Who We Are
  • Becoming WISE
  • WISE IKC Fall Webinar 2020
  • Contact

Our Partners

  • The United Church of Christ
  • UCC Disabilities Ministries
  • Advocate Aurora Health – The Center for Faith and Community Health Transformation

Stay Connected

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
NEWSLETTER SIGN-UP
Request to Use WISE Logo

Copyright © 2025 · United Church of Christ Mental Health Network · Log in