rest between My shoulders….
Those irritating phone calls. Those stupid questions. Those never-ending emails. Those BBM messages cetrang-cetring – so annoying! Ugh! Face it girls, there are times when we’re so tired and exhausted, and even small things aja bisa terasa jadi irritating and aggravating. Have you ever been there? A simple question became so irritating because it sounded so dumb. Then things started to head south with our conversation. And my tone of voice made it clear and obvious that something was not okay. We became frustrated. Each voice on the other end of the phone thought that the other one was causing the problem. That’s when it hit me. Dimana kesaksianmu? Are you representing your King’s glory and nature in the words that you speak? Is that how a woman who knows Jesus should respond? Should a young lady who claims that her God is the anchor of her soul become tossed out when faced with an unexpected disturbance? Silence. Then a quote I read somewhere came to my mind… The fact that you are a woman does not make you a different kind of Christian, but the fact that you are a Christian makes you a different kind of woman… Then I just became silent. Another quote came again. If you silence the voice of your screaming emotions and tune in to the still small voice of His spirit, gentle answers will begin to replace angry ones. ….. Girls, have you ever wondered why there are times we became so impatient towards others? What should we do about it? 1. Eat and sleep Mungkin kedengerannya kurang rohani, but it truly works. Rest like you mean it. Take your rest seriously as you take your work. It doesn’t take rocket science to understand the importance of rest. Di 1 Raja-raja 19, Elia lagi burned out pisan. Dan ini bukannya lagi lebay. Tapi ini mungkin spiritual exhaustion. Dia lagi berada di tengah-tengah incredible, huge things that God wants him to do, yet dia super duper cuapeeeeee …. Trus what did he do? Dia kan nabi, pasti spiritual maturity nya udah bukan kelas ecek-ecek lagi. What can we learn from him? Trus dia ngapain untuk ngatasin his lack of spiritual energy? Pilih salah satu jawaban berikut. A. Read a book about “How to mengatasi kejenuhan in Biblical ways”. B. Ikut seminar C. Ikut all night prayer rally. Jawabanya? D. None of the above Kadang-kadang kita ga perlu over spiritualize the answers to our spiritual exhaustion. Kadang-kadang spiritual exhaustion ini adalah akibat dari physical exhaustion. So, sebelom trying to do anything else, just turn off your computer at 5.30, no more checking emails from clients after office hours, turn off your phone(s), makan yang banyak, dan tiduuuuuuurrrrr! "God wants His loved ones to get their proper rest." (Psalm 127:2 TLB) Truly, as simple as that. Simply eat, sleep and repeat. Ini cara awal memulihkan tenaga. Untuk ngedapetin sense of newness and refreshment. Dan ini bukan berarti males. Orang males itu yah yang tiap harinya begitu. Tapi kita kan ga tiap ari begitu? Ini cuma if really necessary. Under special circumstances. To get out after, or even during a tough week or season. Dr. Caroline Leaf bilang “sleeping only 4-5 hours a night induces mental impairment equivalent to a blood alcohol level above the legal driving limit.” Hiiii….denger tuh…Mangkenye jangan suka begadang ya Neng…Kalo cakep-cakep tapi kena mental impairment sih ga asik banget 2. Change your routines Anytime we experience something new, it gives us energy. Rutinitas bisa bikin bosen. Bsa aja kita exhausted hanya karena we’ve been doing the same thing over and over again. Coba switch up a little. Emang kalo lagi cape kita males ngapa-ngapain. Males dandan, males dress up, males ini itu. Tapi when we dress like slobs, we tend to feel slobbish, tired and unmotivated to do our tasks. Baju itu-itu lagi, pake baju apa aja yang paling gampang ditarik dari urutan atas lemari, kaga pernah mix-n-match, rambut dikuncir kuda mulu, eyeshadow yang warna itu-itu lagi, even jepitan rambut yang sama dipake 3 hari berturut-turut! So what should we do? Modify! Improve! Be creative! Curl your hair dengan cara yang beda. Pake lipstick warna lain. Cardigan yang ini gabung sama blouse itu. Celana ini ternyata cocok sama iket pinggang itu. Pake nice dress yang udah dibeli 6 bulan lalu but you have never worn it just because you want to save it for that special occasion. Don’t wait for special occasion! Wear it today! This is the day that the Lord has made and I will rejoice… (by wearing my beautiful new dress 3. Give thanks ! Kadang-kadang spiritual exhaustion itu“cuma” sekedar spiritual forgetfulness. Kalo kita forgetful sama segala kebaikan Tuhan, kita bisa jadi lupa ngucap syukur dan malah jadi grumpy. If we’re spiritually exhausted, sometimes the best cure is just simply whispering “Thank you Lord…” Mulai dari mana? Look at our bodies. Punya tangan? Kaki? Idung? Mulut? Punya mata yang bisa lihat? Kalo kamu baca blog ini I know you have either laptop/PC/smartphone/or even tablet yang harganya 3,5 kali lipet gaji UMR di Jakarta. Kamu punya kuping? Yang bisa denger, even bisa pake anting supaya tambah cantik? Punya jantung yang sehat tanpa perlu minum obat seumur hidup? Punya ginjal yang sehat tanpa harus cuci darah 2x seminggu? Punya kaki yang bisa loncat-loncat kemana aja kita suka? Take some break from asking ini itu ke Tuhan, but simply say thanks for what He has given… “…give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” 1 Thessalonians 5:18 I personally think that saying thanks to God itu the fastest way of changing my mood from being grumpy. When I consider what blessings He has given to me, it will instantly shift my focus from “not-so-pleasant life” to “count-your-blessings” mode. When we are weary, we often cannot even remember what lifts our hearts. Keep a list of your blessings handy, to help you re-focus on what really matters. So, mari kita bikin jadwal harian to eagerly and enthusiastically say “Thank you Lord!” 4. Clean something Haha! Maybe you’re laughing at this. But as strange as it may sound, cleaning something gives us an immediate sense of order and control. Beneran loh! Kalo lagi ngerasa frenzied and out-of-control, hasil dari bebenah, beberes, bersih-bersih itu bisa mentransformasi my entire perspective *halah bahasanya*. No wonder Joyce Meyer often said “I will attack my house!” Kalo kamar/rumah bersih, rasanya ada tenaga baru to face whatever situation. Tapi kalo ngeliat rumah berantakan, rasanya setiap masalah jadi 10x lebih ngeselin than what it actually is. So, straighten up! Rapiin tuh lemari. Meja. Kulkas. Apa kek yang bisa dirapiin. And don’t forget to put on praise/worship music yang bisa lift up our spirit. 5. Learn to say no One of the biggest emotional drains for women is the need to be available for everyone – friends, family, bosses, colleagues – all the time. Tapi kalo kita terus-terusan dibombardir oleh permintaan mereka, we’ll multitask like crazy. Striving to get more done in less time. Terus-terusan ada dalam steady stream of information from people, screens of computers, blinking alerts of new messages, ringing phones that surround us, etc. It’s just too much information. Information overloaded. You’ll feel knocked down after checking this one and that one for the 30th time. Atau mungkin ga se-ekstrim itu, tapi ada extended period of exertion at a particular task. Or the carrying of too much burdens (such as those in the positions of authority). Or in a business setting when someone forces a certain plan or project. Remember leaders, God charged Moses with leadership, not with performing every duty… So before taking another responsibility, consult with God before saying “yes.” 6. Move it and shake it! I like to move it, move it, move it, I like to move it, move it, move it!*bacanya sambil nyanyi theme song Escape from Madagascar* Don’t know about your girls, but for me, dancing is one of my quickest method of mood changing. Kalo lagi bête,cape,jutek dan sebangsanya, all I need to do is grab my fitness bag and hit the dance floor at the gym. My favorite ones are Bodyjam, Zumba, Sh’bam. Shake my hip, sing silly, dance crazy… This is the cure recipe from tante fenty. Just like what Vicki Baum said “There are shortcut to happiness, and DANCING is one of them.” Mungkin ada yang bilang “ih, aku ga suka nari-nari gituh kak fenty…Aku sih orangnya kalem pendiem,” Well, girls, I was once like you. But I know very well deep down inside every girl’s heart, we like dancing… But maybe throughout our lives, karena pengaruh sekitar, pendidikan dari sekolah, guru, orang tua (anak perempuan mesti tenang/kalem/diem), tuntutan pekerjaan/profesi (kudu wibawa or jaim), we tend to become more and more serious about life. It feels weird to be seen dancing in front of others. Even we don’t want to be seen goyang-goyang dikit pun jua. “Malu ah, apa kata orang ntar?” But then I realized rugi banget kalo gue mikirin apa pikiran orang lain tentang gue. How much fun I would miss out just because thinking about what others think. So, now, I sing because I’m happy. I dance because I am happy (or want to be happy). Why? Karena exercise/work out sampe keringetan itu bisa menghasilkan hormone endorphin. Hormon endorphin ini bisa bikin kita feel relaxed and happy. Juga bersemangat. Coba aja googling. Trus satu lagih nih, dancing sampe keringetan itu bisa releasing toxin dari dalem tubuh kita. Ngeluarin racun-racun itu penting loh. Dan racun itu ga bisa keluar kalo kita ga keringetan. Racun-racun apa ajah? Aduh, gue kaga apal. Istilah medis isn’t my stuff. Google web sebelah aja yak So, now, what do you enjoy doing? The key is to know what energizes you. Is it doing exercises? Taking time to laugh? Engaging in hobbies? Being with friends? Or maybe being alone in a quiet room? Soaking in a bath? Reading a book? Writing a journal/a blog? Cooking? Going for a walk? Playing with the kids? Riding a bicycle? Sitting leisurely in a park? Watching a funny DVD? Intinya adalah enjoy those things that God has made to be life-giving to you. 7. Remember your (re-newed) purpose Having a purpose will give you energy *baca di mana lupa, yang pasti bukan di dindingnya Fitness First* Kalo FF mah bilangnya “Energy: the more you give, the more you get back”. Dipikir-pikir sih bener juga yak? Sometimes we are so entangled with this worldly affairs. Ngurusin kerjaan kantor dari pagi ampe malem sampe lupa apa tujuan idup kita sebagai orang Kristen. Love God - love people- share Jesus. Waktu kita lagi weary, cape, or even sampe spiritual fainting (pingsan rohani), saints may lose testimony, lose opportunity, lose influence, and even lose heart… Heart for others… No wonder we feel exhausted. Cause we’re not functioning in the grand design that God wants us to be. We may go for days, flying through our tasks and routines. If we’re in a place in our Christian life where we simply felt stagnant, maybe we need to “feed” someone. Maybe ministering a sick person. Maybe nurturing a new Christian soul. Maybe resuming to your duty of praying over some people that you have been neglecting for the past few days… Sometimes we need to be reminded of our purpose. 8. Run to God Last but not least. Istirahat penting. Olahraga penting. Makan penting. Tapi yang paling penting itu RUN TO GOD FIRST. Before starting with your daily race, run to God first. Remember that semua 6 point di a tas hanyalah stress management tactics yang diberikan oleh dunia. But they cannot hold a candle to very real stress relief Jesus offers. His methods telah terbukti berhasil dan bertahan through the test of time. Dibuktikan oleh berbagai generasi selama ribuan tahun. Our relationship with Christ is the anchor of our soul. Kalo anchor nya goyah, semuanya akan goyah juga. That’s why betapapun mepetnya waktu, we need to run to Him, not awayfrom Him. Being with God brings a sense of peace and order and comfort yang perlu kita punya to go through the rest of the day. Sneak away in the morning and simply rest in His presence. Invite the Lord into your situation and seek His perspective in the Scripture. Before we turn to anything the world has to offer, let’s turn to Jesus. Then we can find a dose of serenity that we cannot find anywhere else but in Jesus. Pile your troubles on My shoulders.. The one I love rests between My shoulders…near My heart…because that’s where you belong my daughter, in every beat of My heart…
“And he lay down and slept under a broom tree. And behold, an angel touched him and said to him,“Arise and eat.” And he looked, and behold, there was at his head a cake baked on hot stones and a jar of water. And he ate and drank and lay down again. And the angel of the LORD came again a second time and touched him and said, “Arise and eat…And he arose and ate and drank…” 1 1 Raja-raja 19:9
Wuahahahahahahaha… bbm group langsung pada rame cekakakan ngasih komentar. 
Dan kalo diukur-ukur kepadatan massa otot-nya, pasti Esau yang menang lah dibanding cowo2 di gym yang demen banget bench press ampe puluhan kali itu. Kan doski sering bertarung sama hewan buruan. 
