386. The More You Try, The Harder It Gets

Mike Parsons

When your faith seems weak or compromised, what do you do? Well, I think it goes back to the concept of labouring to enter rest. Now, you don’t actually labour to enter rest. That concept, shared in Hebrews, refers to the Old Testament and the old covenant, where people were striving to enter rest but were not succeeding. What it really says is: don’t do that. Don’t try to enter rest in the way they did. The reality is that you are in rest because rest is about trusting in the completed work of Jesus and living in that reality.

When you look at Hebrews and the message it conveys, it’s clear. Essentially, it’s addressing those who were still adhering to Old Testament, old covenant practices. They were striving—striving to enter rest, striving to take the land, fighting for what was promised. All of that was under the old covenant. But in the new covenant, we are already in rest.

Hebrews says: “Therefore, let us fear if, while a promise remains of entering His rest, any one of you may seem to have come short of it. For indeed, we have had good news preached to us, just as they also did; but the word they heard did not profit them, because it was not united by faith in those who heard.” For we who have believed, we enter that rest.

So, if we are operating with a new covenant mindset, we are already in rest. Jesus said, “Come to me, and I will give you rest.” Rest isn’t something you have to achieve or do; it’s something you receive through your relationship with him. And that’s the key many people miss—it’s already happened. Jesus has finished the work. It’s complete.

When your faith feels weak or compromised, you don’t have to do anything because it’s not about your faith—it’s about his faith. “I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” It’s his faith in me, who he believes me to be. When I’m faithless, he remains faithful because he doesn’t change. The truth is, everything has already been accomplished. It’s not about me having enough faith; it’s about recognising that he has enough faith in me. If I can accept how he sees me, then that’s how I’ll live.

The relational aspect is simple: come to Jesus. Keep coming to Jesus. When you feel doubts or struggles, it’s often because you’re trying to set your own agenda about how things should be. Instead, just engage with God without any agenda. Don’t try to see anything or understand it visually. Instead, enter into a realm of perception where you know—you just know—the reality of the rest in him, a rest you’ve already received because of what he’s done.

I would encourage you not to focus on what you need to do but allow him to do what he wants to do. Create space for that relational connection where he can work in you. Look at Psalm 23: “He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside quiet waters; he restores my soul.” You don’t have to strive for rest; it’s already there. Just come to him, and he will give you rest.

Take his yoke upon you, learn from him. He is gentle and humble in heart. Being gentle is about knowing who I am in him, and being humble is about accepting who I am in him. I don’t have to strive or fight for it—I just have to be with him. Jesus says, “Come to me, and I will give you rest.” So, if you’re struggling with doubts or questions, forget about trying to figure it all out. Just keep coming to him.

When you surrender—when you let go of all your agendas and come to him as a living sacrifice—he will do what needs to be done. You don’t need to try to do anything. Trust him to restore you, to enable you. Life has its stresses, but you can choose to create space for God. Let go of your own ideas of what you need, and surrender fully. Say, “Here I am, Lord; you do what you need to do. I’m entering into your rest.”

As you stop trying to receive it and allow him to unveil it to you, you’ll begin to experience the reality of it. It’s already accomplished. You’ve already been included in him—actually, from before the foundation of the world. He simply wants to bring you into an experience of that rest. Stop trying to figure it out or work it out. Just come to him and surrender.

Psalm 46:10 says, “Be still and know that I am God.” In some translations, it says, “Cease striving.” Stop your works, and let him do his. The more you try, the harder it seems to get. God’s invitation is simple: stop, be still, and know that he is God. In that stillness, you’ll know by experience who he is and, in turn, who you are. Stop striving and let him work. The rest is already there, waiting for you to receive it.

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The More You Try, The Harder It Gets

Author: Freedom ARC

Freedom Apostolic Resource Centre, Barnstaple, UK. View all posts by Freedom ARC