Podcast Summary: Elevation with Steven Furtick

Episode: Rethinking Rest (with Jonathan Josephs)

Date: August 31, 2025

Overview

In this episode, Jonathan Josephs, Ballantine Campus Pastor at Elevation Church, dives into the true meaning of rest from a biblical perspective. Drawing from Mark 6 and other scriptures, he explores how spiritual exhaustion affects believers, why busyness seems endless, and how Jesus offers us rest not just at the destination, but “on the way.” He shares personal experiences of burnout in ministry and presents practical spiritual disciplines—silence and solitude—for experiencing the rest Jesus promises.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Endless Busy Season

• Jonathan opens by reflecting on ministry and life, emphasizing that it always seems to be a “busy season.” (08:24)

  • “I remember us coming here with so much enthusiasm… and I remember in that first month turning to someone saying, ‘I was exhausted.’ … And they said, don’t worry, it’s just a busy season… In ministry, it’s always a busy season. Not only in ministry, in life, it’s always a busy season.” – Jonathan (08:40)

• The lie of ‘rest later’: Many people believe if they can just get through their current busy season, they’ll finally be able to rest. In reality, there’s always a “next” season.

2. Spiritual Exhaustion – Tired from Doing Good

• Scriptural foundation: Galatians 6:9, “Let us not become weary in doing good…” and Matthew 11:28, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (02:15-03:17)

• Jonathan notes: It's possible to become weary from the very blessings or callings you once prayed for. (15:43)

  • “Some of us are tired of the very things that we prayed and asked God for. Things that once came into our life as a blessing now feel like a burden. Why? Because we go from busy season to busy season…”

3. The Mark 6 Story – Rest Interrupted

• Disciples’ ministry: They return to Jesus after serving and are excited yet exhausted. Jesus acknowledges their fatigue and invites them to rest:

  • “Come away with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” – Mark 6:31 (12:06)

• Interruption: When the disciples arrive, crowds are waiting—more ministry, more needs. They shift from excitement to irritation:

  • “How do they go from ‘Look what we’ve done for you, God’ to ‘get these people out of here’? We’re tired and we’re hungry.” – Jonathan (16:27)

4. Five Signs of Spiritual Fatigue

Jonathan outlines signs your soul is exhausted (21:54):

• Evasion: Making excuses to avoid God-given responsibilities.

• Isolation: Disinterest in the needs of others; “send the people away.”

• Projection: Attributing your own deficiencies to others.

• Exaggeration: Overstating the difficulty of what God asks of you.

• Preservation: Withholding resources out of fear or exhaustion.

  • “All those things that I just read to you in the response of the disciples—after about a decade of ministry for me, I found myself in that same place.” (24:06)

5. Work for God vs. Work with God

Jonathan shares hard-won personal insight:

• “I had spent ten years working, working for God, but was not working with God… I was rejecting that first calling, which was to be with him and to receive rest for my soul.” (25:48)

6. The Formula for True Rest: Silence + Solitude

• Jesus’ invitation: “Come away with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” (27:08)
• Interpretation: Solitude (“by yourselves”) + Silence (“quiet place”) = Rest
  • “Silence and solitude are two spiritual disciplines… In silence, we create an open, empty space where we are free to receive what God wants to give. In solitude, we come to know the gentleness of God’s presence and the strength of his love.” – Richard Foster, quoted by Jonathan (29:41)
  • Difference between isolation and solitude: “Isolation is when I’m alone. Solitude is when I’m alone with God.” (31:32)

7. Rest Is “On the Way,” Not at the Destination

• Key revelation: Rest isn’t a place or a time off—it’s found in Jesus, in the journey.
  • “I thought rest was a place. I found out that rest is in a person. I thought rest was a destination, if I can just get over there. But I found out rest is on the way.” (36:09)
• Little boats: Jonathan encourages listeners to notice small moments for rest—“little boats”—God provides throughout the day, especially during transitions.

8. Practical Application: Making Space for God in Life’s Transitions

• Examples: Moments in the driveway before heading into the house, early morning or evening routines, and small pauses throughout the day. (39:08)
• If Jesus, with only three years for ministry, prioritized getting alone with God, “what makes us so arrogant to think we can do it without?” (41:17)

9. Core Mission: God Wants You with Him, Not Just to Use You

• “I’ve found I’ve needed in my life the most is that reminder—not only does God want to use me, but that God also wants to be with me.” (42:18)
• “I don’t want to go through life saying, ‘I did all these things in your name.’ And he said, ‘but I never knew you,’ because you never got in the boat and sat still long enough for me to get to know you.” (42:40)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Do not grow weary in doing good. I didn’t know you could grow weary in doing good. But I found out … even though [there are] things God has for us in our life, even though they’re good things, [they] can also leave us in a place of exhaustion.” – Jonathan (15:47)
• “Rest is not found in a place. Rest is found in a Person.” – Jonathan (41:10)
• “Isolation leads to loneliness. Solitude leads to intimacy.” – Jonathan (31:52)
• “Rest happens on the way.” – Jonathan (37:38)
• “Little boats, little moments throughout your day where we can connect with him—those moments of transition.” – Jonathan (40:12)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 01:53 – Jonathan introduces the theme and scriptural foundation
• 08:24 – The myth of “just a busy season” and personal anecdotes
• 12:06 – Mark 6 passage and Jesus’ invitation to rest
• 16:27 – Disciples’ changing attitudes: from excitement to exhaustion
• 21:54 – Five signs of spiritual exhaustion
• 25:48 – Personal burnout and “working for God vs. with God”
• 27:08 – The formula for rest: silence and solitude
• 31:32 – Difference between isolation and solitude; quoting Richard Foster
• 36:09 – Rest is “on the way” and not just at the destination
• 39:08 – Practical examples: “little boats” of rest in everyday life
• 41:17 – If Jesus needed solitude, so do we
• 42:18 – God wants to be with you, not just use you
• 42:40 – The danger of missing intimacy with God through busyness

Closing Prayer & Exhortation

• Jonathan closes with a specific prayer for those experiencing exhaustion, burnout, or spiritual weariness, invoking Matthew 11:28.

  • “Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (43:08)

• Listeners are called to seize small moments (“little boats”) to be with God and find restoration for their souls, even amid the busiest seasons.

Summary Conclusion:
Jonathan Josephs urges believers to rethink rest—not as something to be earned after seasons of busy work, but as an ever-present invitation from Jesus. Through silence and solitude, even brief ones, we encounter the restorative presence of God in the midst of life’s demands. Rest isn’t a distant destination, but a companion on the journey, available “on the way.”