The Rest Stop That Saved Me

Have you ever traveled with family or friends, or alone for that matter, and a huge debate invariably breaks out, whether in your own mind or verbally with your travel buddies. The big questions that seem so unsolvable are something like, “Should we stop to get gas, and if so, when?” Another says, “Maybe we should because I really need to use the restroom.” “Well, I think I can probably wait a while longer, is that okay with everyone else?” My husband will usually offer something along the line of, “We have about 100 more miles on this tank of gas, so we can stop and take care of everything then.” You can imagine floating eyes here at that remark, along with a whispered prayer for the bladder to hold up.

I had been having such a conversation with myself not too long ago when traveling back home from a work trip. The usual comments and questions came to mind. Should I stop and get something to eat since I did not eat breakfast before leaving town? I will have to get gas before I reach home, should I stop now? I really do need to use the bathroom. However, I continued on my way, as we all have been guilty of doing, even knowing all the facts, we find it difficult to make that decision to stop. After all, I thought, with my husband’s voice in my head, “I still have a hundred and eighty miles on this tank.” Another thought followed close behind it, with my bladder’s voice in my head, “But I still have four hours to go!” I was anxious to get home, but there were three cups of coffee that I had had that morning, singing to me. So, with the knowledge that I am no longer a youngster, the old bladder won the round, and I decided to stop, when I spotted a sign that said, “Rest Stop in one mile/Next Rest Stop in 60 miles!”

This turned out to be an incredibly wise decision, because as I pulled into the parking spot, I could barely move, I needed to go to the restroom so badly. Why do we do this to ourselves? I was thankfully able to gain my composure and make it to the facilities in time! Thank the Lord for His great mercies! Believe you me, I uttered a prayer of thanksgiving aloud, which was, “Thank you Lord this rest stop has saved my life!” I began to ponder on life, wondering why we have such a tough time making the decision to ‘stop’ what we are doing for a short while, no matter what it is. We hold ourselves to such a high standard, and we are so used to the rat race we are caught in, that we will exhaust ourselves until we literally fall apart before we decide to take a break. I thought back to what I had been impressed with as I pulled off on the ramp to the rest area. I was thinking, “I do not know these fellow travelers. I am not in competition with them. Even if we are going in the same direction, we are not all going to the same destination. It will make no difference if when I get back on the highway I have to pass them again, they will probably not even know it, and I will probably not know it is them for that matter, because I do not know one car from the next anyway.” It would have to be very unusual for me to recognize that I had even seen it before. However, I ask you, why did any of that matter? It would be of no consequence. Why did I need to justify my pulling over and resting, getting gas and food, or just stopping and using the facilities? I really did not have to answer to anyone regarding that decision, except myself.

As adults, living life and ‘adulting’ as my grown children now call it, we have the power over the decisions we make. We are often harder on ourselves than anyone else would ever be. Though I am a big proponent of having a decent work ethic, we do deserve a break every now and then before getting back on the ‘road of life’ so to speak and continue where we left off. If we need to stop, we should not feel bad to just stop. As much as we feel that everyone is watching us all the time, this is a myth. People are doing their own thing, on their own journey, and probably having their own personal conversations in their own minds about when or where they should stop as well.

Keep in mind, though you may have been traveling on your road trip or journey of life for hours, days, weeks, months, or years, the person in the next lane may have just got on the road and may not yet need a Rest Stop. They may have just eaten, filled up their vehicle with gas, used the facilities, and they are refreshed and ready to go. The Scripture tells us in 2 Corinthians 10:12, “For we dare not make ourselves of the number or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they are measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise.” Everyone’s journeys, callings, talents, and gifts are individualized; therefore, their needs, requirements, and circumstances will be different from ours.

Why would we compare a fruit tree that is only a year old and just a small sapling, with one that has been growing for a decade, and be so foolish as to think one is perfect because it is big, and the other is imperfect because it is still small and has not yet borne fruit? We are not wise to do this. James 1:4 says, “But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.”  Jesus said in Matthew 5:48, “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” It is the process of growth that is needed to bring us to maturity, not as compared to anyone else, but according to the Lord himself. Paul gave us this understanding of this concept in 1 Corinthians 13:12, “For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.” We must continue to strive to meet His standard until we see him face to face.

Going back to my story, quite a beautiful thing happened as I was exiting the facilities. I noticed an Historic Plaque along the sidewalk that got my attention, which was titled, Kemmer Stand/Tavern.’ It stated:

In 1817, John Kemmer purchased land here and built Kemmer Stand, a wayside Inn, at the intersection of Burke Road. It was a two-story, two-section structure that housed many travelers traversing the Cumberland Plateau. At the crest of this hill lies Walton or Great Stage Road. Built in 1800, it was the first federal road across the Plateau.

This indicated to me that I was standing not only at the Rest Stop that saved my life, but there had probably been thousands of weary travelers who passed that way who could give witness to the same. God always has a spot in the road for us to rest when we need it and He will always speak to us when we need a word from Him. 1 Kings 17 tells us a wonderful story of God’s provision when Elijah needed it, “And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the Lord God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word. And the word of the Lord came unto him, saying, get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan. And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there. So, he went and did according unto the word of the Lord: for he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan. And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook.”

As I continued back to my car to leave, I spotted yet another plaque that gave even more insight into the lives that this Rest Stop may have affected.

Welcome to Cumberland County Tennessee! Get ready to visit small towns with big stories. Tennessee Civil War Trails tells riveting stories of battles and leaders, and much more. You’ll learn about some of the states 275,000 enslaved men and women whose self-emancipated, and the 20,000 self-liberated warriors who fought for freedom in the US colored troops.

Your explorations will take you to houses and mills that played a role in the war, and small towns and farms where families found themselves swept up in the conflict. Communities found themselves divided over secession and slavery, causing a ‘war within a war’ that left deep, lingering scars.

Though the state seceded and supplied 120,000 soldiers to Confederate armies, United States sentiment was also strong here, particularly in the eastern part of the state. 31,000 white Tennesseans fought for the Union more than any other state and more battles were fought in Tennessee than any other state except Virginia. Enjoy scenic byways, historic main streets, rivers, and railroads, and explore the fascinating stories all around you. Walk in the footsteps of history and gain inspiration from the men and women who struggled through perilous times period create some history of your own!

Though thousands may have gone before us, we all have one thing in common. The human condition requires rest. This is even more prevalent when we have gone through trials, a war, or difficult and trying circumstances, whether they are physical, emotional, mental, or spiritual. We now have laws that govern our semi-truck drivers’ hours of travel. They must stop and sleep, rest, and refresh after so many hours of traveling, so as not to fall asleep on the road while driving and cause an accident. Their negligence in this area could cost their lives and possibly the lives of others as well. God created us with the need to rest, nor was he surprised by this protocol when he came to earth robed in flesh as the man Christ Jesus.

Rest Stops or Rest Areas, are built along the side of highways for the convenience of the sojourners. However, in our journey of life, there are rest stops that we could and should take advantage of that we so often do not. One of these that we find in scripture is the institution of the Sabbath Rest, introduced to us by none other than our Creator himself. Exodus 20:8-10 tells us, “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:”  Then verse 11 tells us that we can see the reason behind this command in Creation, ‘Exhibit A’,  “For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.”  

God not only took a full day of rest on the seventh day to enjoy his creation, but he took mini breaks along the way. Each day he admired what he had done and the bible states that ‘he saw that it was good.’ He had shown this to his people by example, and then had Moses record it as a commandment, because he knew it was necessary. God does not do anything haphazardly! He did not rest because He was exhausted, but to give us an example of rest, because he knew that we would be. Solomon, though he was and is accounted as being the wisest man who ever lived, spent the first and second chapter of Ecclesiastes lamenting on how life was just vanity. He stated that we work day in and day out, collecting goods and wealth, making things, buying and selling, never being satisfied and never stopping, just having to leave everything to someone else when we die, and we don’t even know if that person will act wisely or foolishly with what we leave them. Then in Ecclesiastes 2:24 he concludes or has a divine revelation, “There is nothing better for a man, than that he should eat and drink, and that he should make his soul enjoy good in his labor. This also I saw that it was from the hand of God.” We need to stop, rest, and enjoy the blessings we have been given, things we have done thus far, regroup, and then continue our journey of life. This builds our faith, encourages us to keep going and is rejuvenating.

The Old Testament also speaks of allowing the land to have a Sabbath rest. They were to plant for six years and then allow the land to lay dormant for the seventh year. This allows the soil to rejuvenate and replenish the nutrients and minerals it has used over the first six years. It allows it to restore its fertility and natural cycles that are needed to produce good crops. It is known as ‘fallowing,’ where the land is not sown or harvested, so it can rest and recover. The cycle can begin again after the Sabbatical rest. This is true in our lives physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. God told his people through the prophet in Hosea 10:12, “Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the Lord, till he comes and rains righteousness upon you.” Once we have rested, we can go again and be more productive. This is God’s way.

Farmers will also alternate the crops they sow from season to season. It promotes better health in the soil and prevents disease. It is a common agricultural practice. Farmers must consider multiple factors when using this method. I mention this just to say that we may not always be on the same cycle of life as everyone else is. It may be that we, within an organization, ministry, church, employment, community service activity, or even in our homes, will need to alternate. We all know as parents, that everyone cannot take a break from parenthood at once; however, everyone needs a break. We work together to allow each other to have moments or times of rejuvenating; whatever this may look like in your home. On our jobs, we know that not everyone could take a vacation at once, though we all need one. We alternate and work out scheduling together to allow this Sabbatical rest to happen, which is for the good of the whole. We see a classic example of this in scripture in the book of Mark, where we see Jesus taking a well deserved and needed nap while the disciples were dealing with a ship amidst the storm.

In my personal story on my travels, the Rest Stop saved me from a possible very embarrassing situation if I had not made it to the restroom in time. If you know what I mean. Other Rest Stops in life could save us from mental breakdowns which could be not only embarrassing but potentially catastrophic in many ways. Spiritual burnout can come and cause havoc in our lives if we do not circumvent them through a time of rest and replenishing. We cannot pour from an empty cup. Ministry is about giving and serving, but we must have something to offer others before we can give. Saving a drowning person requires that we be in a safe place and that we have a life preserve to throw out to them. We must learn to stop and rest.

There was a Rest Stop that saved the Ethiopian eunuch’s life when he made the decision to stop and pull over. We see his story in Acts 8:26-39, “And the angel of the Lord spoke unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goes down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. And he arose and went and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship, was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet. Then the Spirit said unto Philip, go near, and join thyself to this chariot. And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? And he said, how can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him. The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth: In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth. And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man? Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus. And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, “See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, “If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest.” And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him. And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing.”

There are said to be 89.1 million people in Ethiopia, now in 2025, who profess to be Christians, which is over 62% of their population. What great dividends can come from making the decision to stop a while and listen to and obey the Lord. God sees where we are in our journey just as he did the Ethiopian eunuch. There is a contemporary Christian song by Jordan St. Cyr called ‘Weary Traveler,’ which says in one of the lines, “You were never meant to walk this road alone. It will all be worth it, so just hold on. Weary traveler, you won’t be weary long.” Sometimes the rest we need might just be found in the words of a song, on our back porch swinging, in our prayer closet, taking a day trip, reading a book, or listening to an inspirational podcast. There are no rules of when, where, or how. We just need to stop and rest from time to time.

Zacheus life was changed the day he made the decision to stop and see who Jesus was. Luke 19:1-10 tells us his story, “And Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus, which was the chief among the publicans, and he was rich. And he sought to see Jesus who he was; and could not for the press, because he was little of stature. And he ran before and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him: for he was to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zacchaeus, make haste, and come down; for today I must abide at thy house. And he made haste, came down, and received him joyfully. And when they saw it, they all murmured, saying, that he was gone to be guest with a man that is a sinner. And Zacchaeus stood, and said unto the Lord: Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken anything from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold. And Jesus said unto him, this day is salvation come to this house, forasmuch as he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

Jesus changed the life of the woman of Sychar when she stopped long enough to have an unconventional conversation with the Master. The woman with the issue of blood was healed and changed forever, when she decided to touch Jesus which stopped him in his tracks because he felt virtue leave his body. The day blind Bartimaeus began to shout at the top of his lungs, “Have mercy on me, Jesus thou Son of David,” which brought Jesus and the multitude to a standstill, was the day he received his sight. The day the leper decided to come back to the Lord, stop, and worship Him for His healing power, is the day He was made whole. We must not just go on our merry way, just because we are expected to. If we need to stop and rest, we should not just debate about it endlessly, but just do it.

Particularly when it comes to our souls being saved, we should make the decision to stop and talk to the Master. In Isaiah 28:11-12 we read, “For with stammering lips and another tongue will he speak to this people. To whom he said, this is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing.” Jesus said in Matthew 11:28-29, “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.”  His Spirit will be the Rest Stop our souls need that will save us in the end. We should not wait any longer.

We still have so much of life ahead of us, so we should go ahead and fill up our proverbial gas tanks and refresh ourselves so we can finish this race. We must keep our lamps and oil chargers filled. The foolish virgins in the story found in Matthew 25, ran out of oil in their lamps and did not have any extra to tide them over. So, when the bridegroom came to get them, they were out buying oil. As the saying goes, “Do not be at the bus station when your train comes in.” Do not be the one on the highway driving at full speed that falls asleep because they are exhausted. This puts lives, including yours, in grave danger. Go ahead and make the decision to pull down that ramp and rest today! It could be the difference between life or death!