I Finally Learned to Rest — And It Changed More Than My Vacation

Sometimes the biggest breakthroughs come after we slow down, gain clarity, and make room for God to lead.

Credit: JM Troppello

Learning to Rest Was Harder Than I Expected

Last week, we took our annual family vacation to the shore. In previous years, I would spend our evenings working on writing projects, creating content, or catching up on articles for Medium. Even while I was technically on vacation, my mind was still focused on productivity.

This year was different.

For three weeks in June, our pastor preached a sermon series about rest, relaxation, and refreshment. Those messages stayed with me. I realized that I rarely allow myself to truly rest because there is always something that needs to be done. There are responsibilities at home, work to finish, people to care for, and countless items on my to-do list.

Before we left, I made a decision. I told my husband, “This vacation, I’m going to allow myself to simply relax.” It wasn’t easy at first, but it was exactly what I needed.

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Rest Creates Room for Clarity

When we returned home, real life was waiting for us again. We unpacked, put away our grocery delivery, attended church, and settled back into our normal routines. Even so, we intentionally set aside a little time over the weekend to continue resting, rather than immediately filling every spare moment with work.

During that quieter time, I decided to take a fresh look at my Stan Store. I used ChatGPT to help me evaluate what was working well and what might confuse visitors.

During that workshop time with ChatGPT, I simplified the customer journey. Instead of presenting numerous options all at once, I reorganized everything into four clear steps: start with my free guide, learn my proven Vinted system, expand into additional income opportunities, and continue growing from there. The goal wasn’t to offer less value — it was to make the next step easier to understand.

The results surprised me.

Before making those changes, 8 people had visited my store without downloading anything. After simplifying everything the next day, only 2 visitors came to my store — but one of them downloaded my free guide. As of the time of writing this article, 3 more people have come to my store. I’ll be workshopping again later to figure out my perfect customer and how I can reach them better.

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That may sound like a small victory, but to me it confirmed something important.

Clarity matters.

God Brings Clarity When We Slow Down

That experience reminded me that the same principle applies to our spiritual lives.

Sometimes we are so busy doing good things that we never slow down long enough to hear what God is trying to show us. We keep adding more tasks, more commitments, and more distractions, while God may simply be asking us to simplify, trust Him, and follow His direction.

The story of Mary and Martha comes to mind. Martha was faithfully serving and working, but Mary chose to sit at Jesus’ feet and listen. Jesus wasn’t criticizing hard work — He was reminding Martha that spending time with Him was the better choice in that moment.

When we spend time with the Lord, He gives us clarity. He reveals what needs to change, what we should keep doing, and what we need to let go. As we follow His leading, we often discover that growth doesn’t always come from doing more. Sometimes it comes from doing the right things with greater focus.

As Proverbs 3:5–6 reminds us:

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.”

Looking back, I believe this vacation taught me far more than I expected. Rest wasn’t wasted time. It refreshed my heart, cleared my mind, strengthened my relationship with my husband, and even helped me make practical improvements to my business.

Sometimes the breakthrough we’re looking for isn’t found in working harder. It’s found in finally being still long enough for God to show us the next step.

Have you ever learned an unexpected lesson while you were on vacation?

And are you able to truly rest and refresh, whether on the weekend or even for a few quiet moments during the day, so that God can refill you before you pour into others?

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